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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  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. cell — in a prison
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. file — a document
  4. cell — a phone
  5. clip — a video
  6. stem — to come from
  7. club — a group
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. deal — to handle
  11. club — for dancing
  12. clip — to cut
  13. club — for golf
  14. cap — of ice
  15. clip — for paper
  16. file — a line of people
  17. cap — a lid
  18. firm — a company
  19. file — a tool
  20. cap — a hat
  21. firm — decided
  22. cell — in biology
  23. firm — steady
  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