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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: stem · bore · craft · march · bat · net · foot · clip

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. bat — the animal
  3. foot — a measure
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. clip — for paper
  7. stem — to come from
  8. march — the month
  9. craft — boats
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. craft — a skill
  13. clip — to cut
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — for catching
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. bore — to tire
  20. march — music
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. march — the month
  23. clip — a video
  24. net — in sport

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