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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: cap · ball · clip · hand · bore · stem · lean · net

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — in cards
  3. cap — a hat
  4. ball — a dance
  5. bore — to drill
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. cap — a lid
  10. clip — for paper
  11. clip — a video
  12. net — in sport
  13. bore — to tire
  14. cap — of ice
  15. lean — thin
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — for catching
  19. lean — to bend
  20. ball — a great time
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. clip — to cut
  24. stem — to come from

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