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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 120 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  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. stem — of a plant
  2. band — a ring
  3. clip — a video
  4. bound — certain
  5. press — newspapers
  6. lie — to recline
  7. court — for sport
  8. clip — for paper
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. spring — the season
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. clip — to cut
  13. spring — of water
  14. stem — to come from
  15. bound — tied together
  16. press — to push
  17. band — a music group
  18. spring — a coil
  19. press — a publisher
  20. court — of a king
  21. bound — obliged
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. court — of law
  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