: a wind instrument made from the hollow joint of a plant
5
: an ancient Hebrew unit of length equal to six cubits
6
a
: a thin elastic tongue (as of cane, wood, metal, or plastic) fastened at one end over an air opening in a wind instrument (such as a clarinet, organ pipe, or accordion) and set in vibration by an air current
b
: a woodwind instrument that produces sound by the vibrating of a reed against the mouthpiece
the reeds of an orchestra
7
: a device on a loom resembling a comb and used to space warp yarns evenly
Noun
the reeds along the edge of a pond
the reed section of the orchestra
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
On that day of many moods, Lake Titicaca’s pellucid waters were shades of silver, slate, blue and charcoal and edged with reeds.—Aatish Taseer, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2023 The park was another new one: Before the riverbed was cleaned and its banks strengthened, this place was neglected, overgrown with reeds.—Haiane Avakian, The Atlantic, 27 Sep. 2023 Later brooms sometimes used willow branches, reeds, flax or other materials gathered into a bundle and tied to a stick.—Kate Morgan, Washington Post, 3 Nov. 2023 This candle is available in two sizes and the scent is also available as a reed diffuser and room and linen spray.—L. Daniela Alvarez, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Oct. 2023 Play/Pause Volume Embed Read by the translator. remains unwashed, and the waves
sleep;
reeds bend in no wind
like drunks.—Taras Shevchenko, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023 Javed makes a butterfly net out of a stick, a loop of reed and some of the thick cobwebs gathered from the house’s eaves.—Jessica Kiang, Variety, 7 Oct. 2023 Hot tip: if the scent starts to fade,just flip the reeds upside down.—Claire Rutter, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2023 Or, Armenian music featuring the duduk (a reed instrument, like an oboe), played at weddings and festivals.—Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Sep. 2023
Verb
Their monthly candle and reed diffuser subscription is sure to make any candle-lover swoon.—Amanda Garrity, Good Housekeeping, 11 Nov. 2022 Crest's ultra-popular teeth whitening kits are on sale too, plus anti-aging face serums from SkinMedica, reed diffusers from Nest, and R+Co’s cult-favorite hair products.—Sarah Madaus, SELF, 11 Oct. 2022 The Real Housewives of Potomac star, professor and philanthropist launched Onyi Home Essentials on Monday — a collection of candles, reed diffusers and room sprays designed to bring a little luxury to the everyday.—Megan Stein, Peoplemag, 20 Sep. 2022 Drummer Ryan Bennett, Milwaukee bassist Jeff Hamann and reed player Jesse Montijo rounded out the sympathetic band.—Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 12 Sep. 2022 Drinking water is from the desalination plant, rainwater is collected, and wastewater is cleaned via a series of aerobic, non-aerobic, UV, pond, and reed bed systems.—Johanna Read, Forbes, 20 June 2022 The keyboard has reed switches, which use magnets to actuate.—Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 3 Dec. 2021 Thorne was 22 of 31 for 287 yards with a 51-yard touchdown pass to Montorie Foster and a 29-yard pass to Jayden reed for a score in the first quarter.—Raul Dominguez, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Nov. 2021 Lisa starts berating Chris, who appears on the verge of passing out from the one-two punch of wearing a three-piece suit under hot lights and huffing that box-fresh vanilla reed diffuser straight from the source.—Olivia Crandall, Vulture, 4 Oct. 2021 See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'reed.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English rede, from Old English hrēod; akin to Old High German hriot reed
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
: any of various tall slender grasses of wet areas that have stems with large joints
b
: a stem of such a grass
c
: a growth or mass of reeds
2
: a musical instrument made of the hollow joint of a plant
3
: a thin flexible strip (as of cane, wood, metal, or plastic) fastened at one end to the mouthpiece of a musical instrument (as a clarinet) or over an air opening (as in an accordion) and set in vibration by an air current (as the breath)
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