REFERENCE

Endophora and Exophora

Reference

Is the relationship of one linguistic expression to another, in which

one provides the information necessary to interpret the other.

Pronouns

Achieved through the use of

Article
the
Demonstrative
s
Item such
a/as

Anaphoric Reference
Anaphoric reference means that a word
in a text refers back to other ideas in the
text for its meaning. It can be compared
with cataphoric reference, which means a
word refers to ideas later in the text.
The plate was dropped by Susan. It
shattered loudly the word "it" refers
to the phrase "the plate".
Sue is so stressed out about her
assigment, she is talking about it on
Facebook.

Use of it and this/that

Susan dropped the plate. It shattered loudly
Susan dropped the plate. This shattered loudly
Susan dropped the plate at Lindsays house. It shattered
loudly

Introduction: It traces the development in dialectology in

recent years
Introduction: this traces the development in dialectology in
recent years
The introduction is fine. It is brief and precise
The introduction is about dialectology. It traces the

Cataphoric Reference
A cataphoric reference unit refers to
another unit that is introduced later on in
the text/speech. To understand the unit
refered to by a cataphoric reference you
would need to look ahead in the
text/speech.
Hes played junkies and cities slickers, Jedi knights
and US rangers. Hes at home in Hollywoods
boulevards and Glasgows tenements. He spends his
life in the arms of beautiful women and is happily
married It seems Ewan McGregor can do anything
he wants

Here, the pronoun He is a Cataphoric reference because it

Ewan McGregor that is introduced later on the text.

Exophoric Reference: Outside the

The third direction of reference is
text

outside the text, that is, to items

that are not described explicitly in
the text. This is called "exophoric
reference" because exo means
"outward." Reference words that refer
outside a text are called "exophoric
words." Exophoric words indicate
assumed shared knowledge between
the writer and the reader. Since the
writer assumes that the reader knows
what the exophoric words refer to, the
writer does not bother to explain them

Exophoric Reference
Example:
Finally on 7 May 1945, Germany
surrendered to the Allied Forces and
the war in Europe was over.
1. The noun phrase the Allied Forces is
exophoric; this word refers loosely to certain
members of the fifty nations that opposed the
Axis countries during World War 2.

In 2010 Mexico celebrated the Bicentennial or Bicentenario

actually takes in two celebrations, and the second the no less
important the Centennial in 1910

Celebrating 200 and 100 years of freedom since

Mexican Revolution of 1810.

On 21 December 1972, 1the Basic Treaty was

signed by East and West Germany, and relations
between 2these started to improve. During the
next two decades, they began to cooperate with
each other by sharing cultural and commercial
3
activities such as arts exchange programs and
joint business ventures. However, East Germans
were still dissatisfied, for 4their living standard
was lower than 5that of West Germany. 7Their
industries produced inferior goods, and 8their
country was polluted from inferior mining
methods and careless industrial waste.

the Basic Treaty is exophoric, referring out

of the text to the de facto recognition of
East Germany by the West German
government. This is not mentioned
anywhere in the text; the reader is
assumed to know what it is, making it
exophoric.

activities is cataphoric, referring downward

to arts exchange programs and joint
business ventures.
.