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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: leaves · cold · safe · rule · stem · wax · pound · clip

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. rule — government
  5. rule — a law
  6. wax — to grow
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. clip — for paper
  10. cold — not warm
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. clip — a video
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. cold — an illness
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. clip — to cut
  24. stem — to come from

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