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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.

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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. branch — a division
  3. bank — of a river
  4. capital — money
  5. clip — a video
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bark — to shout
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bank — for money
  10. dip — to sink
  11. capital — a city
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. clip — for paper
  14. drill — a practice
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. drill — the tool
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. bank — for money
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. clip — to cut
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. drill — army training

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