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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. clip — to cut
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. dip — to sink
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. mark — a grade
  13. stem — to come from
  14. tear — to rip
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. mark — a trace
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. tear — from crying
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. tear — from crying
  21. foot — a measure
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. clip — a video

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