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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. cue — a signal
  3. can — a tin
  4. tube — a container
  5. face — part of the head
  6. clip — to cut
  7. face — to confront
  8. stem — to come from
  9. chest — of your body
  10. can — a tin
  11. chest — a box
  12. tube — the underground
  13. chest — of your body
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. face — to point toward
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. can — to be able to
  19. branch — a division
  20. clip — a video
  21. cue — a hint
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. cue — for pool

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