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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 116 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 · stem · calf · clip · drill · pit · season · staff

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. season — in sport
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. clip — to cut
  5. stem — to come from
  6. cap — a hat
  7. staff — employees
  8. season — of the year
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cap — a lid
  11. clip — a video
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. clip — for paper
  14. drill — a practice
  15. drill — army training
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. staff — employees
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. staff — a stick
  21. pit — a hole
  22. pit — in a race
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. stem — a stem cell

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