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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: cell · stem · perch · clip · rash · vault · pass · wound

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. cell — in biology
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. perch — the fish
  7. clip — for paper
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. pass — a permit
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. clip — a video
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. vault — a safe
  14. clip — to cut
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. cell — a phone
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rash — a series

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