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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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Word bank
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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: foot · clip · season · face · kid · bound · bank · stem

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. clip — for paper
  3. season — in sport
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. bank — of a river
  7. foot — a measure
  8. bank — for money
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bound — certain
  13. face — part of the head
  14. season — of the year
  15. face — to confront
  16. stem — to come from
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. clip — to cut
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bound — tied together
  22. clip — a video
  23. face — to point toward
  24. foot — the bottom

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