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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. field — for sport
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. spring — a coil
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. spring — the season
  11. spring — of water
  12. stem — to come from
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. field — a subject
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. field — farmland
  18. wake — a trail

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