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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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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: bat · stem · field · scale · suit · chest · clip · bound

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  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. clip — to cut
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. scale — size or range
  4. clip — a video
  5. chest — of your body
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bound — tied together
  8. field — for sport
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bound — certain
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. suit — in cards
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. chest — of your body
  15. scale — in music
  16. field — a subject
  17. chest — a box
  18. suit — to fit
  19. bat — the animal
  20. suit — clothes
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bound — obliged
  23. field — farmland
  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