ref

1 of 2

noun

ˈref 

: a referee in a game or sport

ref

2 of 2

abbreviation

1

reference

2

refunding

Examples of ref in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Come to think of it, there were a lot of questionable calls/no-calls from the officiating crew during Saturday night's game in Jordan Hare, perhaps Fralick was one of the refs trying desperately to gift the Tigers a win to save his skin. — Austin Perry Outkick, FOXNews.com, 22 Sep. 2026

But the refs ruled the backwards pass/lateral/whatever was actually a forward pass, no matter where the ball landed. — Arkansas Online, 18 Sep. 2026

But that’s not how the VAR system works, because the Premier League fears that every key decision would end with the ref staring at the pitchside monitor. — Graham Scott, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026

Based on that explanation, Whittingham and Odom believe the refs got it right. — Michael Marot, Chicago Tribune, 7 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1890, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for ref

• chef
• clef
• deaf

Kids Definition

ref

noun

ˈref

: referee entry 1 sense 2