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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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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 · wind · board · cue · bear · trunk · safe · clip

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. wind — moving air
  5. board — a committee
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. board — to get on
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. cue — a hint
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wind — moving air
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bear — the animal
  19. cue — a signal
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. cue — for pool
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. stem — to come from
  24. clip — a video

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