Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

ref

/ɹɛf/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.95 in modern English

Syllables: ref
IPA: /ɹɛf/

6

Scrabble Score

3

Letters

1

Syllables

3

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Clipping of referee.

Informal

noun

Abbreviation of reference.

noun

Clipping of refsheet.

noun

Abbreviation of refectory.

noun

Clipping of refrigerator.

Informal

verb

To referee; to act as a referee in a sport or game.

Informal

noun

Initialism of row echelon form.

name

Initialism of Research Excellence Framework: a system for assessing the quality of research in higher-education institutions.

British usage

Example Sentences

"Please close the ref."
"On the block when we were growing up we called him Ronnie the Enforcer because he umped all the stickball games and reffed the hockey."

Etymology

Clippings.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ɹɛf/

Usage

Informal
British usage

Inflected Forms

refs (plural) refs (present, singular) reffing (participle, present) reffed (participle, past) reffed (past)

Phrases

work the refs

Frequently Paired Words

ref.

Synonyms

referee

Homonyms

reph

Rhymes With

jeff chef deaf pdf geoff steph neff clef rpf sheff leff sbf

Questions

How do you pronounce ref?: The recorded pronunciation is /ɹɛf/.
What does ref mean?: Clipping of referee.
Where does ref come from?: Clippings.

How to pronounce ref

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “ref”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ɹɛf/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “ref”.
Repeat and practice — Say “ref” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.