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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. key — in music
  3. key — the most important part
  4. cap — a hat
  5. clip — for paper
  6. tube — a container
  7. tube — the underground
  8. cap — a lid
  9. fall — to drop
  10. suit — in cards
  11. clip — to cut
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — the season
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. cap — of ice
  17. suit — to fit
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. suit — clothes
  21. key — for a lock
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. clip — a video
  24. stem — a stem cell

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