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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 124 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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. clip — for paper
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. clip — a video
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. stem — to come from
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. clip — to cut
  13. rush — hurry
  14. bank — of a river
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. bank — for money
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. mine — belonging to me

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