reference library
noun
1
: a collection of books often about a particular subject
2
: a library that lets people use books on the premises but does not allow books to be taken out
Examples of reference library in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
African American Museum and Library, Oakland Housed in Oakland’s former main library, this special reference library is home to 16,000 books by or about African Americans, 70,000 photographs, a rare book collection and an archive of 160 special collections.
—
Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 16 Jan. 2025
In short, the information center was a reference library, staffed with reference librarians, of the sort that would become commonplace in the 1980s.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 Dec. 2024
Back in January, a report by the digital reference library company DataReportal revealed that U.S. adults aged 16 to 64 spend an average of six hours and 40 minutes browsing the internet on any device.
—Matt Robison, Newsweek, 20 Nov. 2024
According to Scripps, the prizes for the first-place winner include a $50,000 cash prize from the organization, a $2,500 cash prize and reference library from Merriam-Webster (where the bee pulls its collection of words) and $400 worth of reference works from Encyclopædia Britannica.
—Charlotte Phillipp, Peoplemag, 31 May 2024
And through a new connector, the public will now be able to go from the museum to the art reference library without going outside.
—Robin Pogrebin, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2024
Pool via Getty Images; EPA For the next several months, Microtrace analyzed paint gathered from Ridgway’s home, workplace and vehicles to create a reference library and then compared it with paint fragments collected in or around the dumpsites where victims were found.
—Lewis Kamb, NBC News, 3 Mar. 2023
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Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 16 Jan. 2025
In short, the information center was a reference library, staffed with reference librarians, of the sort that would become commonplace in the 1980s.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 Dec. 2024
Back in January, a report by the digital reference library company DataReportal revealed that U.S. adults aged 16 to 64 spend an average of six hours and 40 minutes browsing the internet on any device.
—Matt Robison, Newsweek, 20 Nov. 2024
According to Scripps, the prizes for the first-place winner include a $50,000 cash prize from the organization, a $2,500 cash prize and reference library from Merriam-Webster (where the bee pulls its collection of words) and $400 worth of reference works from Encyclopædia Britannica.
—Charlotte Phillipp, Peoplemag, 31 May 2024
And through a new connector, the public will now be able to go from the museum to the art reference library without going outside.
—Robin Pogrebin, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2024
Pool via Getty Images; EPA For the next several months, Microtrace analyzed paint gathered from Ridgway’s home, workplace and vehicles to create a reference library and then compared it with paint fragments collected in or around the dumpsites where victims were found.
—Lewis Kamb, NBC News, 3 Mar. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Reference library.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reference%20library. Accessed 20 May. 2025.
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