POINT OF REFERENCE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does point of reference mean? 

• POINT OF REFERENCE (noun)
  The noun POINT OF REFERENCE has 1 sense:

1. an indicator that orients you generally

  Familiarity information: POINT OF REFERENCE used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• POINT OF REFERENCE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An indicator that orients you generally

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

point of reference; reference; reference point

Context example:

it is used as a reference for comparing the heating and the electrical energy involved

Hypernyms ("point of reference" is a kind of...):

indicator (a signal for attracting attention)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "point of reference"):

bench mark; benchmark (a surveyor's mark on a permanent object of predetermined position and elevation used as a reference point)

landmark (a mark showing the boundary of a piece of land)

lubber's line; lubber's mark; lubber's point; lubber line (a fixed line on a ship's compass indicating its heading)

mark; target (a reference point to shoot at)

white line (a white stripe in the middle of a road to mark traffic lanes)

buoy (bright-colored; a float attached by rope to the seabed to mark channels in a harbor or underwater hazards)

 Context examples 

Situated farthest from a point of reference.

(Distal, NCI Thesaurus/CDISC)

To compare planets by their metallicities, scientists use the sun as a point of reference, almost like describing how much caffeine beverages have by comparing them to a cup of coffee.

('Warm Neptune' Has Unexpectedly Primitive Atmosphere, NASA)