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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: net · wind · ruler · stem · clip · bound · roll · toast

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. stem — to come from
  3. clip — a video
  4. wind — moving air
  5. net — in sport
  6. clip — to cut
  7. net — after costs
  8. bound — tied together
  9. bound — obliged
  10. roll — a cake
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. clip — for paper
  13. roll — a list
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. net — for catching
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. wind — moving air
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. toast — bread
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. bound — certain
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. ruler — for measuring

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