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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 116 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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. file — a line of people
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. stem — to come from
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — ground
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. file — a document
  9. dip — to sink
  10. clip — a video
  11. fall — to drop
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. fall — to drop
  16. file — a tool
  17. snap — to click
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — to cut
  20. land — a country
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. fall — the season
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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