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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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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: lash · firm · stem · scale · clip · wake · bear · capital

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. bear — the animal
  4. capital — money
  5. stem — to come from
  6. capital — a city
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. clip — for paper
  13. scale — in music
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. firm — a company
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bear — the animal
  20. firm — steady
  21. clip — a video
  22. scale — size or range
  23. firm — decided
  24. lash — to lash out

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