From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishrefereeref‧er‧ee1 /ˌrefəˈriː/ ●●○ noun [countable] 1 DSsomeone who makes sure that the rules of a sport such as football, basketball, or boxing, are followed → umpire2 British EnglishBE someone who provides information about you when you are trying to get a job His headmaster agreed to act as his referee.3 SOLVE/DEAL WITH A PROBLEMsomeone who is asked to settle a disagreement4 someone who judges an article or research idea before it is published or money is provided for itTHESAURUSreferee someone who makes sure that the rules of a sport are obeyed in soccer, American football, rugby, ice hockey, basketball, boxing, or wrestlinga football refereeThe referee blew his whistle to stop the game.umpire someone who makes sure that the rules are obeyed in baseball, cricket, tennis, or hockeyHe was given several warnings by the umpire.a tennis umpirejudge someone who decides the result of a competition or sporting contestThere will be only one winner and the judges’ decision is final.A panel of judges will evaluate the dancers' performance. arbitrator someone who officially decides how an argument between two opposing sides should be settledThey insisted that an independent arbitrator must settle the dispute.
Examples from the Corpus
referee• A referee can be called in for some disputes between neighbors.• Here players and referees make rare mistakes alike.• a juvenile court referee• But an eagle eyed referee may have sabotaged their cup run ... because the pitch was five yards too narrow.• At least two top linesmen and one referee may quit after this season.• Articles submitted to the journal are read by several referees.• Fifteen seconds earlier he had been knocked down and lay on the canvas as the referee counted just short of a knockout.• In April 1990 an all-out battle between Bègles and Montferrand raged on for a while before the referee could stop the slaughter.• He was overruled by the referee.• One of the players was sent off for arguing with the referee.• The referee then went off the field to consult an officer at the touchline who waved us off the pitch.• The referee should never have allowed the first goal.refereereferee2 verb (refereed, refereeing) [intransitive, transitive] DSto be the referee of a game→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
referee• I had hoped to get some work done, but instead spent most of my time refereeing between the two of them.• In 1989 he took a rest from running junior soccer teams and this season began refereeing in the South Merseyside Junior League.• A team photograph was taken and after that Barry Jewitt, who was refereeing, started off the match.• Mike Wootton, who had refereed the match impeccably, declined.• At the moment she is refereeing the netball match over at the playing field.From Longman Business Dictionaryrefereeref‧er‧ee /ˌrefəˈriː/ noun [countable]1British English a person who provides information about your character, abilities, or qualifications when you are trying to get a jobApplications should be in the form of a CV and include the names of three referees.His former manager agreed to act as his referee.2BANKING a person or organization named on a BILL OF EXCHANGE as a ‘referee in case of need’ and from whom the person holding the bill may demand payment if the bill is not paid or accepted 