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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 120 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: stem · mark · kid · staff · bank · march · racket · clip

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. clip — to cut
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. kid — to tease
  6. march — music
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. clip — a video
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. staff — employees
  11. march — the month
  12. mark — a trace
  13. mark — a grade
  14. bank — of a river
  15. staff — a stick
  16. stem — to come from
  17. clip — for paper
  18. staff — employees
  19. bank — for money
  20. kid — child
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. march — the month
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. stem — a stem cell

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