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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. clip — for paper
  3. stem — to come from
  4. bear — the animal
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. scale — in music
  7. scale — size or range
  8. clip — to cut
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. bear — the animal
  15. can — to be able to
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. can — a tin
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. tube — the underground
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. tube — a container
  23. clip — a video
  24. snap — to click

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