=over =item ref EXPR =item ref Returns a non-empty string if EXPR is a reference, the empty string otherwise. If EXPR is not specified, C<$_> will be used. The value returned depends on the type of thing the reference is a reference to. Builtin types include: SCALAR ARRAY HASH CODE REF GLOB LVALUE If the referenced object has been blessed into a package, then that package name is returned instead. You can think of C as a C operator. if (ref($r) eq "HASH") { print "r is a reference to a hash.\n"; } unless (ref($r)) { print "r is not a reference at all.\n"; } if (UNIVERSAL::isa($r, "HASH")) { # for subclassing print "r is a reference to something that isa hash.\n"; } See also L. =back