reference collection
A reference collection is a library's set of materials meant to be consulted on-site rather than borrowed—encyclopedias, dictionaries, atlases, directories, and other works designed for looking things up rather than reading through.
These items typically cannot be checked out: The rare map is in the reference collection.
- encyclopediasMulti-volume knowledge collections
- catalogingSystematic organization into records
- e-booksElectronic publications
- almanacsYearly reference publications
- dictionariesBooks defining vocabulary
look it up · fact checking · handbooks · indexing · online databases · literature review · thesauruses · bibliographies · glossaries · atlases · gazetteers · card catalog · library stacks · nonfiction section · metadata · primary sources · secondary sources · research guide
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