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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. stem — to come from
  3. clip — for paper
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. spell — letters
  6. branch — a division
  7. spell — a short time
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. clip — to cut
  10. press — to push
  11. press — newspapers
  12. key — in music
  13. clip — a video
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. sharp — clever
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. spell — magic
  20. press — a publisher
  21. key — for a lock
  22. key — the most important part
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. branch — of a tree

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