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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: field · march · object · wind · bear · mate · press · clip

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. object — a thing
  6. object — to protest
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — to cut
  9. field — a subject
  10. press — newspapers
  11. march — the month
  12. field — for sport
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mate — a friend
  15. bear — the animal
  16. march — music
  17. press — to push
  18. march — the month
  19. wind — moving air
  20. press — a publisher
  21. mate — a partner
  22. object — an aim
  23. clip — for paper
  24. mate — to breed

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