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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. bank — for money
  3. ground — the earth
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. ground — a position
  6. can — a tin
  7. bank — for money
  8. can — to be able to
  9. spring — a coil
  10. clip — a video
  11. ground — crushed
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. stem — to come from
  15. spring — the season
  16. spring — of water
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. bank — of a river
  20. clip — for paper
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. can — a tin
  23. clip — to cut
  24. pitch — completely

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