Glossary coding Term Page

Reference

Access by pointing to original data without taking ownership

reference #rust#memory#borrowing

Korean version

Aliases

borrowed reference

Prerequisites

Ownership

Related Concepts

Borrowing Ownership Slice Lifetime String

Core Idea

A reference lets code access original data by pointing to it instead of copying the value or taking ownership. In Rust this appears as &T and &mut T, which separate read-only access from mutable access.

Why It Matters Here

Mathbong uses references as the hub behind borrowing, slices, and Rust method signatures. Once you feel the difference between "take the value" and "temporarily point at it," the rest of Rust reads much more naturally.

Posts Mentioning This Concept

[Rust Series Part 14] Lifetime Fundamentals Layer lifetime annotations on top of borrowing rules to read and design safe reference scopes.[Rust Series 7] Handling Slices and Strings Safely See how String differs from &str and borrow only the slice you need without duplicating data.[Rust Series 6] Getting Comfortable with References and Borrowing Understand how immutable and mutable references differ and build instincts for what you can borrow at once.