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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  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. bound — tied together
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. clip — a video
  5. saw — the tool
  6. bound — certain
  7. bound — obliged
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. branch — a division
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. degree — from a university
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — temperature
  16. saw — the tool
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — to cut
  21. season — in sport
  22. season — of the year
  23. stem — to come from
  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