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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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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. staff — employees
  3. file — a line of people
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. stem — to come from
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. file — a tool
  10. staff — employees
  11. fine — all right
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. fine — high quality
  14. staff — a stick
  15. file — a document
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. chest — a box

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