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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: mouse · saw · lash · stem · fork · chair · clip · roll

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — to cut
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. fork — in a road
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. saw — the tool
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. saw — the tool
  19. clip — for paper
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. roll — a list
  23. chair — a leader
  24. mouse — for a computer

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