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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. stem — to come from
  3. drill — the tool
  4. clip — to cut
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. pass — a permit
  7. clip — a video
  8. bank — for money
  9. bore — to drill
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. drill — army training
  12. bore — to tire
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. lean — thin
  15. bank — for money
  16. file — a line of people
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. file — a document
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bank — of a river
  22. lean — to bend
  23. file — a tool
  24. clip — for paper

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