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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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468
Word bank
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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  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. clip — for paper
  2. clip — a video
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. net — after costs
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. stem — to come from
  7. prune — to trim
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. wind — moving air
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. wind — moving air
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. prune — to trim
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — in sport
  18. kick — in football
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. perch — the fish
  23. clip — to cut
  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