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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. court — for sport
  3. stem — to come from
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. clip — a video
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. clip — to cut
  8. court — of a king
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. vault — a safe
  11. bulb — for light
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. bulb — for light
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — the sport
  16. squash — to crush
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. branch — a division
  23. clip — for paper
  24. branch — of a bank

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