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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wave · mate · stem · clip · lash · sharp · degree · last

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. clip — to cut
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. sharp — clever
  7. last — final
  8. clip — for paper
  9. mate — a friend
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. mate — a partner
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. degree — an amount
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. stem — to come from
  19. degree — temperature
  20. last — to go on
  21. mate — to breed
  22. degree — from a university
  23. last — finally
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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