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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 120 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: mate · pass · fall · stem · craft · dip · clip · perch

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. clip — to cut
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — the season
  6. craft — boats
  7. fall — to drop
  8. mate — a friend
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. pass — a permit
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. mate — a partner
  16. perch — the fish
  17. clip — a video
  18. dip — to sink
  19. stem — to come from
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. mate — to breed
  23. clip — for paper
  24. craft — a skill

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