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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. snap — to click
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stem — to come from
  8. last — to go on
  9. clip — to cut
  10. branch — a division
  11. clip — a video
  12. cap — a hat
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. cap — a lid
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. last — final
  17. cap — of ice
  18. last — finally
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. clip — for paper
  22. rash — hasty
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. rash — a series

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