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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: clip · trunk · wind · bowl · leaves · club · stem · ball

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. stem — to come from
  5. club — for golf
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. club — a group
  8. clip — to cut
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. club — for dancing
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. ball — a dance
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. clip — for paper
  17. ball — a great time
  18. clip — a video
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bowl — a football final

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