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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. field — farmland
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. bass — the fish
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. clip — to cut
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. can — to be able to
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. clip — for paper
  11. last — final
  12. last — to go on
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. clip — a video
  15. pass — a permit
  16. field — for sport
  17. can — a tin
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. last — finally
  20. can — a tin
  21. field — a subject
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. bass — low music

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