one to whom something is referred, esp. for decision or settlement; arbitrator.

(in certain games and sports) a judge having functions fixed by the rules of the game or sport; umpire.

an authority who evaluates scientific, technical, or scholarly papers, grant proposals, or the like for the publication or funding institution to which they have been submitted.

Law . a person selected by a court to take testimony in a case and return it to the court with recommendations as to the decision.

to preside over as referee; act as referee in.

to act as referee.

noun

adjudicator , arbiter , arbitrator , conciliator , judge , ref , [[umpirenotes:referee originally referred to a person appointed by the british parliament to examine patent applications (1621) and was formed from english refer and -ee. the sense of \'an arbitrator or person to whom a dispute is referred\' was first recorded in 1690; by 1840 the word acquired the further sense of \'the judge of play in games and sports.\' baseball]] , boxing , and cricket have umpires ; basketball , hockey , rugby , and football have referees - and american football has both. , umpire

verb

adjudge , adjudicate , arbitrate , [[umpirenotes:referee originally referred to a person appointed by the british parliament to examine patent applications (1621) and was formed from english refer and -ee. the sense of \'an arbitrator or person to whom a dispute is referred\' was first recorded in 1690; by 1840 the word acquired the further sense of \'the judge of play in games and sports.\' baseball]] , boxing , and cricket have umpires ; basketball , hockey , rugby , and football have referees - and american football has both. , decide , decree , determine , rule , umpire , arbiter , arbitrator , conciliator , intermediary , judge , mediate , mediator , moderator , official