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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 124 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 cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. tear — from crying
  3. clip — a video
  4. prune — to trim
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. bass — low music
  7. tear — from crying
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. stem — to come from
  14. mug — a cup
  15. clip — for paper
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. clip — to cut
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — to push
  22. tear — to rip
  23. mug — to rob
  24. mug — a face

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