Real Dictionary

reed
Reeds are tall plants that grow in large groups in shallow water or on ground that is always wet and soft. They have strong, hollow stems that can be used for making things such as mats or baskets.
countable noun: A reed is a small piece of cane or metal inserted into the mouthpiece of a woodwind instrument. The reed vibrates when you blow through it and makes a sound.

Reed in American English
any of various tall, slender grasses (esp. genus Phragmites), with plumelike inflorescences, growing in wet or marshy land
designating an instrument whose sound is produced by a vibrating reed or reeds, specif., the oboe, clarinet, saxophone, English horn, or bassoon
John1887-1920; U.S. journalist & radical
noun: a male given name, form of Read
noun: the straight stalk of any of various tall grasses, esp. of the genera Phragmites and Arundo, growing in marshy places

reed in British English
noun: any of various widely distributed tall grasses of the genus Phragmites, esp P. communis, that grow in swamps and shallow water and have jointed hollow stalks
noun: Sir Carol. 1906–76, English film director. His films include The Third Man (1949), An Outcast of the Islands (1951), and Oliver! (1968), for which he won an Oscar