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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. present — there
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. present — the time now
  5. present — a gift
  6. clip — to cut
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. march — the month
  9. band — a music group
  10. march — the month
  11. can — to be able to
  12. vault — a safe
  13. stem — to come from
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. band — a ring
  16. snap — to click
  17. clip — for paper
  18. can — a tin
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. clip — a video
  21. march — music
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. can — a tin
  24. stem — of a plant

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