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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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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. ground — crushed
  4. hand — help
  5. ground — the earth
  6. ground — a position
  7. stem — to come from
  8. ball — a great time
  9. present — the time now
  10. fork — in a road
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. ball — a dance
  16. present — a gift
  17. hand — in cards
  18. fork — to eat with

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