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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.

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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: cell · stem · fall · clip · kid · row · stand · cabinet

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. row — a line
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. fall — to drop
  6. stem — to come from
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — to tease
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — to cut
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. clip — for paper
  15. row — to paddle
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. stand — to bear
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — the season
  24. cell — a phone

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