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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a match
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. cell — in biology
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. cell — a phone
  17. stem — to come from
  18. mine — for digging

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