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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: track · foot · clip · shower · chair · stem · trunk · rock

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. shower — rain
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. chair — a leader
  8. clip — a video
  9. rock — a stone
  10. track — a path
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. track — a song
  13. shower — to wash
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. rock — music
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. foot — a measure
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. clip — for paper
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — to come from
  24. clip — to cut

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