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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  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. mine — belonging to me
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. branch — a division
  4. craft — boats
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. stem — to come from
  7. mine — for digging
  8. cue — a hint
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. rule — government
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. cue — a signal
  14. clip — for paper
  15. cue — for pool
  16. craft — a skill
  17. rule — a law
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — to cut
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. rule — to rule out
  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