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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: cabinet · jam · race · clip · stem · kick · rock · stand

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. clip — for paper
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. race — the arms race
  5. rock — a stone
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. stand — to bear
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. rock — music
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. race — humankind
  19. clip — a video
  20. stem — to come from
  21. clip — to cut
  22. race — a contest
  23. kick — in football
  24. kick — with a leg

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