refero
Latin
Etymology
From re- + ferō (“bear, carry”).
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈre.fe.roː/, [ˈrɛfɛroː]
- (Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈre.fe.ro/, [ˈrɛːfero]
Verb
referō (present infinitive referre, perfect active rettulī, supine relātum); third conjugation, irregular
- I bear, bring, drive or carry back.
- Synonym: reveho
- I give back, give up, return, restore, pay back, repay, pay in return, show my gratitude.
- (of sound) I bring back, return, answer, echo, resound.
- I bring back, restore, renew, revive, repeat.
- I say in return, respond, reply, answer, represent.
- Synonyms: respondeo, occurro
- I call to mind, recall, think over, call back to memory, repeat one's self
- 8 CE, Ovid, Fasti 2.104:
- liceat sūmpta pauca referre lyra
- Let me take up my lyre to recall a few [notes].
- liceat sūmpta pauca referre lyra
- Synonyms: memorō, admoneō, moneō, retineō, meminī, redūcō
- Antonyms: oblīvīscor, oblitterō
- I reconsider
- I refer to, assign to, give credit for.
- I judge by, measure according to a certain standard.
- I restore, renew, revive, repeat.
- Synonyms: iterō, integrō, redintegrō, renovō, novō, reficiō, reparō
- (news or message) relate, recount, tell, say.
- Synonyms: oro, alloquor, loquor, for, aio, alloquor, loquor, colloquor
- (matter of import, to the senate) I bring before, refer to.
- Synonym: propono
- (name or item in a list) I include, enter.
- I make known officially, report, deliver, transmit, announce, notify, proclaim, register, record.
- Synonyms: dēnūntiō, adnuntio, nuntio, indico, renūntiō, nū̆ncupō, profiteor, dēferō, prōdō, ēdīcō, praedicō, cōntiōnor
- (passive) I retreat, go back, withdraw, return.
- Synonyms: facessō, dēcēdō, discēdō, cēdō, dēficiō, concēdō, excēdō, regredior, subtrahō, subdūcō, inclīnō, recēdō, āmoveō, recipiō, vertō
- Antonyms: prōgredior, prōdeō, prōcēdō, prōficiō, aggredior, ēvehō, incēdō, accēdō, adeō
- Titus Livius, Ab Urbe Condita I, 14:
- pedes quoque referret gradum
- The infantry also retreated from his position
- pedes quoque referret gradum
- I tell, recount, narrate
- Synonyms: ferō, prōdō, pandō, trādō, dicitur
Usage notes
- The forms "rettul..." are also found as "retul...".
Conjugation
| Conjugation of referō (third conjugation, irregular, suppletive) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| indicative | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| active | present | referō | refers | refert | referimus | refertis | referunt |
| imperfect | referēbam | referēbās | referēbat | referēbāmus | referēbātis | referēbant | |
| future | referam | referēs | referet | referēmus | referētis | referent | |
| perfect | rettulī | rettulistī | rettulit | rettulimus | rettulistis | rettulērunt, rettulēre | |
| pluperfect | rettuleram | rettulerās | rettulerat | rettulerāmus | rettulerātis | rettulerant | |
| future perfect | rettulerō | rettuleris | rettulerit | rettulerimus | rettuleritis | rettulerint | |
| passive | present | referor | referris, referre | refertur | referimur | referiminī | referuntur |
| imperfect | referēbar | referēbāris, referēbāre | referēbātur | referēbāmur | referēbāminī | referēbantur | |
| future | referar | referēris, referēre | referētur | referēmur | referēminī | referentur | |
| perfect | relātus + present active indicative of sum | ||||||
| pluperfect | relātus + imperfect active indicative of sum | ||||||
| future perfect | relātus + future active indicative of sum | ||||||
| subjunctive | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| active | present | referam | referās | referat | referāmus | referātis | referant |
| imperfect | referrem | referrēs | referret | referrēmus | referrētis | referrent | |
| perfect | rettulerim | rettulerīs | rettulerit | rettulerīmus | rettulerītis | rettulerint | |
| pluperfect | rettulissem | rettulissēs | rettulisset | rettulissēmus | rettulissētis | rettulissent | |
| passive | present | referar | referāris, referāre | referātur | referāmur | referāminī | referantur |
| imperfect | referrer | referrēris, referrēre | referrētur | referrēmur | referrēminī | referrentur | |
| perfect | relātus + present active subjunctive of sum | ||||||
| pluperfect | relātus + imperfect active subjunctive of sum | ||||||
| imperative | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| active | present | — | refer | — | — | referte | — |
| future | — | refertō | refertō | — | refertōte | referuntō | |
| passive | present | — | referre | — | — | referiminī | — |
| future | — | refertor | refertor | — | — | referuntor | |
| non-finite forms | active | passive | |||||
| present | perfect | future | present | perfect | future | ||
| infinitives | referre | rettulisse | relātūrum esse | referrī | relātum esse | relātum īrī | |
| participles | referēns | — | relātūrus | — | relātus | referendus, referundus | |
| verbal nouns | gerund | supine | |||||
| genitive | dative | accusative | ablative | accusative | ablative | ||
| referendī | referendō | referendum | referendō | relātum | relātū | ||
Derived terms
- pedem referre
- relātiō
- relātīvus
- relātor
- relātōria
- relātus
Related terms
Related terms
- adferō / afferō
- auferō
- circumferō
- cōnferō
- dēferō
- differō
- efferō
- ferō
- īnferō
- interferō
- intrōferō
- offerō
- perferō
- postferō
- praeferō
- praeterferor
- prōferō
- sufferō
- trānsferō
Descendants
- >? Proto-Albanian: *refenj-
- Albanian: rrëfej
- → Catalan: referir, relatar
- → Dutch: refereren, relateren
- → English: refer, relate
- → French: référer, relater
- → German: referieren
- → Italian: riferire
- → Portuguese: referir, relatar
- → Spanish: referir, relatar
- → Swedish: relatera
References
- “refero”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “refero”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- refero in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette
- refero in Enrico Olivetti, editor (2003-2023) Dizionario Latino, Olivetti Media Communication
- Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book, London: Macmillan and Co.
- to retreat step by step: gradum sensim referre
- to consider one's own advantage in everything: omnia ad suam utilitatem referre
- to show gratitude (in one's acts): gratiam alicui referre (meritam, debitam) pro aliqua re
- to return like for like: par pari referre
- to reward amply; to give manifold recompense for: bonam (praeclaram) gratiam referre
- the book is attributed to an unknown writer: liber refertur ad nescio quem auctorem
- to enter a thing in one's note-book: aliquid in commentarios suos referre (Tusc. 3. 22. 54)
- to make virtue the standard in every thought and act: omnia consilia et facta ad virtutem referre (Phil. 10. 10. 20)
- to measure something by the standard of something else; to make something one's criterion: dirigere or referre aliquid ad aliquam rem
- to deify a person: aliquem in deorum numerum referre, reponere
- to consider as a god: aliquem in deorum numero referre
- to book a debt: nomina facere or in tabulas referre
- to put down to a man's credit: alicui acceptum referre aliquid (Verr. 2. 70. 170)
- to retire into private life: in otium se referre (Fam. 99)
- to consider a thing from a political point of view: ad rei publicae rationes aliquid referre
- to record in the official tablets (Annales maximi): in album referre (De Or. 2. 12. 52)
- to place a person's name on the list of the proscribed: in proscriptorum numerum referre aliquem (Rosc. Am. 11. 32)
- to bring a question before the senate (of the presiding magistrate): ad senatum referre (Cic. Dom. 53. 136)
- to enter a thing in the public records: in tabulas publicas referre aliquid
- to put some one on the list of the accused: referre in reos aliquem
- to retire (without turning one's back on the enemy): pedem referre
- to gain a victory, win a battle: victoriam ferre, referre
- to retreat step by step: gradum sensim referre
- Frederic M. Wheelock and Richard A. LaFleur (2000), Wheelock's Latin (6th edition), HarperCollins: New York, →ISBN