球賽裁判（名詞與動詞）
這是核心畫面最具體的一身裝扮：比賽中被交付判定權的人，也是這個字今天最常見的用法。
sports official · noun · B2
The person in charge of a sports game, making sure the rules are followed.
裁判
核心畫面
Picture the person standing in the middle of a game while two sides argue. Both sides push the question over to them — was that a foul or not? — and whatever they say, the argument stops there. You can think of a referee as the person a question gets handed to, whose answer closes it. The stripes and the whistle are just the sports version of that job.
可以想成球場中央那個人：兩邊吵起來的時候，問題會被推到他面前——剛剛那個動作算不算犯規？——而他一開口，這件事就定了…更多收起
可以想成球場中央那個人：兩邊吵起來的時候，問題會被推到他面前——剛剛那個動作算不算犯規？——而他一開口，這件事就定了。referee 的畫面比較像「事情被交到他手上、由他給答案的那個人」，黑白條紋衣和哨子只是這個角色在運動場上的樣子；換到別的場合，同一個角色就換了一身衣服。From the word’s history
Etymonline: the noun referee (1620s) comes from the verb refer (late 14c., from Latin referre, literally 're-' back + 'ferre' to carry, i.e. 'to carry back'). By the 1660s it meant 'one to whom any matter in question is referred for decision, an umpire'; the legal sense follows in the 1680s and the sporting sense only by 1820. So the general 'person a matter is handed to' sense is the older one, and the sports official is one branch of it.
據 Etymonline，referee 這個名詞出現在 1620 年代，來自動詞 refer（14 世紀晚期，源自拉丁文 referre，字面就是「carry back 帶回去」：re- 回、ferre 帶）。到 1660 年代它的意思是「事情被交到他那裡、由他做決定的人」，1680 年代進入法律用語，運動場上的「裁判」反而要到 1820 年才出現。所以先有「被交付問題的人」，後有「球賽裁判」——這也解釋了為什麼推薦人、仲裁人、審稿人看起來毫不相干，其實都是同一個角色：一件事被 refer 給誰，誰就是那個 referee。
Etymonline, https://www.etymonline.com/word/referee
Three branches
被請來評斷、定奪的第三方
脫掉球場那身衣服，剩下的就是核心：兩造把爭執、或一份稿件，交到一個中立的人手上，由他給出結論。
impartial mediator · noun · B2
A fair outsider brought in to settle an argument between two sides.
仲裁人
求職時可以去查證的推薦人（英式）
這次被交到他手上的問題是「這個人到底怎麼樣？」——公司把問題 refer 給他，他就是那個 referee。
job reference person · noun · B2
Someone who gives information about you when you are trying to get a job (British English).
推薦人
原始詞典資料5 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，原文照列，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。
refereenoun/ˌɹɛf.əˈɹiː/
- 1
hobbieslifestylesportsAn umpire or judge; an official who makes sure the rules are followed during a game.
- The referee kicked Jim out of the game for fighting.
- 2
A person who settles a dispute.
- 3
A person who writes a letter of reference or provides a reference by phone call for someone. (In the UK such a person is sometimes, and in the US the person is typically, referred to as a reference.)
- Your application, along with letters from three referees, should be received by January 31.
- 4
An expert who judges the manuscript of an article or book to decide if it should be published.
refereeverb/ˌɹɛf.əˈɹiː/
- 1
To act as a referee.
- He has to referee three hockey games this weekend.
- She has to finish refereeing an article for Nature.
資料來源：英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary（CC BY-SA 4.0）。 原文照列，未經改寫。