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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. clip — a video
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. snap — to click
  11. bore — to tire
  12. prune — to trim
  13. clip — for paper
  14. bore — to drill
  15. stem — to come from
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. clip — to cut
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. rule — government
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. rule — a law
  24. prune — the fruit

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