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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: march · wind · bay · clip · present · stem

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. stem — to come from
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. present — a gift
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — a video
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. present — there
  16. present — the time now
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. wind — moving air

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com