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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: dip · pass · net · mate · face · last · clip · stem

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. clip — for paper
  3. face — to confront
  4. clip — to cut
  5. clip — a video
  6. mate — a friend
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. last — final
  9. net — in sport
  10. stem — to come from
  11. face — part of the head
  12. dip — to sink
  13. net — for catching
  14. last — finally
  15. net — after costs
  16. last — to go on
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. mate — a partner
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. face — to point toward
  22. mate — to breed
  23. pass — a permit
  24. dip — a sauce

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