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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. clip — to cut
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. ball — a great time
  9. kid — child
  10. kid — to tease
  11. clip — a video
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. stem — to come from
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. ball — a dance
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. clip — for paper
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. wake — a trail
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. wake — before a funeral

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