Link Centre Dictionary

reed

UK/ɹiːd/ US/ˈrid/ fairly common uk

noun

1.

tall woody perennial grasses with hollow slender stems especially of the genera Arundo and Phragmites

2.

United States journalist who reported on the October Revolution from Petrograd in 1917; founded the Communist Labor Party in America in 1919; is buried in the Kremlin in Moscow (1887-1920)

Synonyms
3.

United States physician who proved that yellow fever is transmitted by mosquitoes (1851-1902)

Synonyms
4.

a vibrator consisting of a thin strip of stiff material that vibrates to produce a tone when air streams over it

  • “the clarinetist fitted a new reed onto his mouthpiece”
Synonyms
5.

a musical instrument that sounds by means of a reed

Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English red, from Old English hrēod, from Proto-West Germanic *hreud (“reed”), of uncertain origin. Cognates Cognate with North Frisian raid (“reed”), Saterland Frisian Räit (“reed”), West Frisian reid (“reed”), Dutch riet (“reed”), German Reet, Ried (“reed”). No cognates in North Germanic languages, but the existence of an otherwise unattested Gothic *𐌷𐍂𐌹𐌿𐌳 (*hriud) was supposed by the brothers Grimm. They also theorised that the word may have a relation to the retas mentioned in Noctes Atticae (Aulus Gellius). The measuring reed sense is the translation of Akkadian qanûm ("cane") used in the Bible and elsewhere.

Phrases

  • bluejoint reed grass
  • Blyth's reed warbler
  • broken reed
  • common reed
  • double reed
  • free reed
  • giant reed
  • great reed warbler
  • Lou Reed
  • Reed City

Related words

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.