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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 120 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: mine · lash · staff · snap · clip · field · pass · stem

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  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. stem — of a plant
  2. field — farmland
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. staff — employees
  7. snap — to click
  8. mine — for digging
  9. clip — a video
  10. staff — employees
  11. staff — a stick
  12. pass — a permit
  13. field — a subject
  14. clip — to cut
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. stem — to come from
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. clip — for paper
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. field — for sport
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  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