Examples of referent in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
On a metal album, even the ugliest sounds tend to have some earthly referent.
—
Brad Sanders, Pitchfork, 8 June 2026
Social psychologists John French and Bertram Raven identified five primary sources of power in organizations: legitimate, reward, coercive, expert and referent power.
—Kisha Wynter, Forbes.com, 24 Mar. 2026
There’s the referent; that’s the raccoon.
—Kory Stamper, Longreads, 19 Mar. 2026
The potential metaphoric referents here quickly become clear, and are likely to vary by the viewer.
—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 2 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for referent
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Brad Sanders, Pitchfork, 8 June 2026
Social psychologists John French and Bertram Raven identified five primary sources of power in organizations: legitimate, reward, coercive, expert and referent power.
—Kisha Wynter, Forbes.com, 24 Mar. 2026
There’s the referent; that’s the raccoon.
—Kory Stamper, Longreads, 19 Mar. 2026
The potential metaphoric referents here quickly become clear, and are likely to vary by the viewer.
—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 2 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for referent
Cite this Entry
“Referent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/referent. Accessed 15 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
referent
noun
ref·er·ent
ˈref-(ə-)rənt 
: something that refers or is referred to
especially
: the thing a word represents
referent
adjective
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