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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. clip — a video
  5. stem — to come from
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. key — in music
  8. last — final
  9. mark — a grade
  10. land — a country
  11. land — to come down
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. bore — to tire
  14. mark — a trace
  15. key — for a lock
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. clip — for paper
  18. bore — to drill
  19. key — the most important part
  20. clip — to cut
  21. last — to go on
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. last — finally
  24. lash — to lash out

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