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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: press · wave · fall · wake · stem · trunk · clip · coach

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. fall — the season
  4. stem — to come from
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. press — a publisher
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. press — to push
  11. clip — a video
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. fall — to drop
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. fall — to drop
  20. wake — a trail
  21. clip — to cut
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. press — newspapers
  24. coach — a trainer

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