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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: bore · clip · snap · stem · firm · file · trunk · tear

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. clip — for paper
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bore — to drill
  6. firm — a company
  7. clip — a video
  8. firm — decided
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. tear — from crying
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. file — a line of people
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. bore — to tire
  17. file — a tool
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. firm — steady
  20. tear — from crying
  21. clip — to cut
  22. file — a document
  23. tear — to rip
  24. snap — to click

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