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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. race — a contest
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. race — the arms race
  8. mug — a face
  9. clip — for paper
  10. net — in sport
  11. clip — a video
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. net — after costs
  14. stem — to come from
  15. mug — a cup
  16. mug — to rob
  17. net — for catching
  18. clip — to cut
  19. kick — in football
  20. race — humankind
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bark — to shout
  24. hand — help

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