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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: leaves · chair · stem · clip · lie · cell · fine · kid

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. clip — to cut
  4. chair — a leader
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. kid — child
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. lie — to recline
  10. clip — for paper
  11. fine — high quality
  12. cell — in biology
  13. clip — a video
  14. kid — to tease
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. fine — all right
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. cell — a phone
  23. stem — to come from
  24. chair — to sit on

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