Meaning & use
cultural references
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Meaning
nounplural
Mentions of well-known people, events, songs, or ideas from a particular culture that a text or speaker expects an audience to recognize.
Grammar: Use the plural for several such mentions; use 'a cultural reference' for one. Often followed by 'to': cultural references to movies.
Patterns
- cultural references to something
- make a cultural reference
- understand cultural references
The comedy is full of cultural references to 1990s television shows.
Translators often add notes to explain cultural references that foreign readers may miss.
Her speech included cultural references to local festivals and songs.
Common combinations
- full of cultural references
- The novel is full of cultural references that only local readers understand.
- cultural references to something
- The song makes cultural references to ancient myths.
- understand cultural references
- Students need background knowledge to understand cultural references in the text.
- obscure cultural references
- His jokes rely on obscure cultural references that few people get.
Synonyms and how they differ
- allusions
- Allusions are indirect mentions, often literary; 'cultural references' is broader and includes direct mentions of popular culture.
- in-jokes
- In-jokes are understood only by a small group; cultural references can be understood by a whole society.
Word family
Commonly confused: cultural references or cultural reference?
cultural references vs cultural reference
The singular means one mention; the plural means several. Use the singular when you mean a single example.
Practice
The film is full of cultural ______ to American movies from the 1980s.
Choose one answer.
We need a plural noun after 'cultural' to mean mentions, so 'references' is correct. 'Refers' is a verb, 'referring' is a participle, and 'referential' is an adjective, so none fit the noun slot.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “cultural references”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.