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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 116 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: bulb · staff · clip · pitcher · nail · last · bark · stem

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. last — final
  3. bark — to shout
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. last — to go on
  6. bulb — for light
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. staff — employees
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. stem — to come from
  15. last — finally
  16. bulb — for light
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. staff — a stick
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. clip — for paper
  22. staff — employees
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. pitcher — a jug

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