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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: foot · clip · cap · wave · chest · present · stem · tear

  1. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. clip — for paper
  3. present — a gift
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. chest — a box
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — to rip
  9. cap — a hat
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. present — the time now
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cap — a lid
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. foot — a measure
  18. stem — to come from
  19. tear — from crying
  20. chest — of your body
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — to cut
  23. present — there
  24. chest — of your body

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