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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: hand · saw · stem · clip · rest · mate · last · ruler

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. rest — what's left
  3. rest — a break
  4. clip — a video
  5. hand — in cards
  6. clip — to cut
  7. rest — what's left
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — help
  10. clip — for paper
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. mate — a friend
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. mate — a partner
  16. last — final
  17. mate — to breed
  18. last — to go on
  19. last — finally
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. stem — to come from
  24. ruler — a monarch

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