Symbol and Referent

Symbol and referent
These terms may clarify the subject. A symbol is something which we use to represent another thing - it might be a picture, a letter, a spoken or written word - anything we use conventionally for the purpose. The thing that the symbol identifies is the referent. This may sometimes be an object in the physical world (the word Rover is the symbol; a real dog is the referent). But it may be something which is not at all, or not obviously, present - like freedom, unicorns or Hamlet.

A referent is a person or thing to which a linguistic expression or other symbol refers. For example, in the sentence Mary saw me, the referent of the word Mary is the particular person called Mary who is being spoken of, while the referent of the word me is the person uttering the sentence.
(dalam kalimat Mary melihat saya , referen kata Mary adalah orang tertentu yang disebut Mary yang sedang dibicarakan , sedangkan referen kata saya adalah orang yang mengucapkan kalimat)

A referent is a person, entity, place, concept, experience and so on in the real (or an imagined) world which is designated by a word or phrase. For example, the word cat'refers to' a feline domestic animal, while hobbit refers to a small human-like creature with hairy feet and pointed ears (in the fictional universe of J.R.R. Tolkein). Reference is often contrasted with 'sense'--semantic relations between words (e.g. antonymy, synonymy) which are internal to language.

Two expressions which have the same referent are said to be co-referential. In the sentence John had his dog with him, for instance, the noun John and the pronoun him are co-referential, since they both refer to the same person (John).
In semantics

The triangle of reference, from Ogden and Richards' The Meaning of Meaning.
In fields such as semantics and semiotics, a distinction is made between a referent and a reference. Reference is a relationship in which a symbol or sign (a word, for example) signifies something; the referent is the thing signified. The referent may be an actual person or object, or may be something more abstract, such as a set of actions.[3][4]
Reference and referents were considered at length in the 1923 book The Meaning of Meaning by the Cambridge scholars C. K. Ogden and I. A. Richards. Ogden has pointed out that reference is a psychological process, and that referents themselves may be psychological – existing in the imagination of the referrer, and not necessarily in the real world.[5] For further ideas related to this observation, see absent referent and failure to refer.

Metaphors As Symbolism
Examples of symbolism that take the form of metaphors include:
- Time is money: This is symbolic because it warns you that when you spend your time, you are giving up the opportunity to be doing something else with that time (just as when you spend your money, you give up your chance to do something else with the money). Further, like money, time is not infinite.

- Life is a roller-coaster: This is symbolic because it indicates that there will be ups and downs in life that you have to weather. 

- He is a rock: This is symbolic because it signifies that he is strong and dependable.

- Love is a jewel: This is symbolic because it suggests that love is rare and pressure.

Symbolism is found in colors:
Black is used to represent death or evil.
White stands for life and purity.
Red can symbolize blood, passion, danger, or immoral character.
Purple is a royal color.
Yellow stands for violence or decay.
Blue represents peacefulness and calm.
Even flowers can have a symbolism:
Roses stand for romance.
Violets represent shyness.
Lilies stand for beauty and temptation.
Chrysanthemums represent perfection.

Symbolism, as you see, can be found almost anywhere. Any time there is something that represents more than its literal meaning, this can be an example of symbolism.

Reference vs. referent
Reference: relationship between piece of language and the things in the world. 
Referent: A referent is concrete object or concept that is designated by a word or expression.
Example:
Princess Diana is the referent of Rose of England.
The relationship between Princess Diana and Rose of England is called reference.

http://www.academia.edu/6319442/BBM_8_Unsur_Semantik_dan_Jenis_Makna
https://www.thoughtco.com/referent-grammar-1692033