The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word THESAURI
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
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More clues leading to the result THESAURI
- Reference books are thus improperly used by one
- Word founts possibly a hit with user
- He’s endlessly bullish about wordfinders
- Sources of words given by new user – a hit
- Hit works about Jacob’s relative with right vocabulary in these
- References unfinished dissertation about a Biblical city
- References can be seen by everyone wearing the Asian garment
- References in Thai sure to require translation
- Hear suit about writers’ needs when lacking an alternative
- Having nothing to lose, authorise reprinted lists
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "References" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case references = thesauri.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does THESAURI mean?
THESAURI noun- A publication, usually in the form of a book, that provides synonyms (and sometimes antonyms) for the words of a given language.
- A dictionary or encyclopedia.
- A hierarchy of subject headings — canonic titles of themes and topics, the titles serving as search keys.