Full Idea
Some people hold that it is reference, in some more or less full-blooded sense, which constitutes our basic intellectual or psychological connection with the world.
Gist of Idea
It is said that proper reference is our intellectual link with the world
Source
Henry Laycock (Words without Objects [2006], Pref)
Book Reference
Laycock,Henry: 'Words without Objects' [OUP 2006], p.-5
A Reaction
This is the view which Laycock sets out to challenge, by showing that we talk about stuff like water without any singular reference occurring at all. I think he is probably right.