Reference vs. Inference — What's the Difference?

Reference is a relationship between objects in which one object designates, or acts as a means by which to connect to or link to, another object. The first object in this relation is said to refer to the second object.

Inferences are steps in reasoning, moving from premises to logical consequences; etymologically, the word infer means to "carry forward". Inference is theoretically traditionally divided into deduction and induction, a distinction that in Europe dates at least to Aristotle (300s BCE).

The act of referring to something

A conclusion reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning

Significance for a specified matter; relation or relationship

The act or process of deriving logical conclusions from premises known or assumed to be true.

Meaning or denotation

The act of reasoning from factual knowledge or evidence.

A mention of an occurrence or situation

Something inferred.

A note in a publication referring the reader to another passage or source.

Usage Problem A hint or suggestion

The passage or source so referred to.

(uncountable) The act or process of inferring by deduction or induction.

A work frequently used as a source.

(countable) That which is inferred; a truth or proposition drawn from another which is admitted or supposed to be true; a conclusion; a deduction.

A mark or footnote used to direct a reader elsewhere for additional information.

The act or process of inferring by deduction or induction.

Submission of a case to a referee.

That which inferred; a truth or proposition drawn from another which is admitted or supposed to be true; a conclusion; a deduction.

Legal proceedings conducted before or by a referee.

The reasoning involved in drawing a conclusion or making a logical judgment on the basis of circumstantial evidence and prior conclusions rather than on the basis of direct observation

A person who recommends another or who can vouch for another's fitness or qualifications, as for a job.

A statement about a person's qualifications, character, and dependability.

To supply (a text) with references

To cite as a reference

Usage Problem To mention or allude to

A relationship or relation (to something).

A measurement one can compare (some other measurement) to.

Information about a person, provided by someone (a referee) with whom they are well acquainted.

A person who provides this information; onlyn in UK English: a referee.

A reference work.

(attributive) That which serves as a reference work.

The act of referring: a submitting for information or decision.

(semantics) A relation between objects in which one object designates, or acts as a means by which to connect to or link to, another object.

(academic writing) A short written identification of a previously published work which is used as a source for a text.

(academic writing) A previously published written work thus indicated; a source.

(computing) An object containing information which refers to data stored elsewhere, as opposed to containing the data itself.

A special sequence used to represent complex characters in markup languages, such as ™ for the ™ symbol.

(obsolete) Appeal.

To provide a list of references for (a text).

To refer to, to use as a reference.

To mention, to cite.

(programming) To contain the value that is a memory address of some value stored in memory.

The act of referring, or the state of being referred; as, reference to a chart for guidance.

That which refers to something; a specific direction of the attention; as, a reference in a text-book.

Relation; regard; respect.

One who, or that which, is referred to.

The act of submitting a matter in dispute to the judgment of one or more persons for decision.

Appeal.

A remark that calls attention to something or someone;

A short note recognizing a source of information or of a quoted passage;

An indicator that orients you generally;

A book to which you can refer for authoritative facts;

A formal recommendation by a former employer to a potential future employer describing the person's qualifications and dependability;

The most direct or specific meaning of a word or expression; the class of objects that an expression refers to;

The act of referring or consulting;

A publication (or a passage from a publication) that is referred to;

The relation between a word or phrase and the object or idea it refers to;

Refer to;