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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. current — of water
  4. stem — to come from
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. firm — steady
  7. field — a subject
  8. cell — in biology
  9. field — farmland
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. field — for sport
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. current — happening now
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. clip — to cut
  19. firm — decided
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. clip — for paper
  23. clip — a video
  24. current — electric

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