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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: fork · clip · season · stem · arm · bark · can · racket

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  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. can — to be able to
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. season — in sport
  4. stem — to come from
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. can — a tin
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. season — of the year
  9. can — a tin
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bark — to shout
  14. clip — to cut
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. clip — for paper
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. clip — a video
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. fork — in a road
  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