XmlDocument.CreateEntityReference creates an XmlEntityReference with the specified name.
Option Explicit
Option Strict
Imports System
Imports System.IO
Imports System.Xml
Public Class Sample
Public Shared Sub Main()
Dim doc As New XmlDocument()
doc.LoadXml("<!DOCTYPE book [<!ENTITY h 'hardcover'>]>" & _
"<book genre='Computer' ISBN='1-111111-57-5'>" & _
"<title>C#</title>" & _
"<misc/>" & _
"</book>")
Dim entityref As XmlEntityReference = doc.CreateEntityReference("h")
Console.WriteLine(entityref.ChildNodes.Count)
doc.DocumentElement.LastChild.AppendChild(entityref)
Console.WriteLine(entityref.FirstChild.InnerText)
End Sub 'Main
End Class 'Sample