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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: capital · trunk · tear · clip · stem · racket · fine · bowl

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. stem — to come from
  7. clip — a video
  8. fine — high quality
  9. capital — money
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. tear — from crying
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. clip — for paper
  15. tear — from crying
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. fine — all right
  19. capital — a city
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. tear — to rip

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