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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. stand — to bear
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. spell — magic
  5. drill — the tool
  6. stem — to come from
  7. drill — a practice
  8. game — a match
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. spell — letters
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. game — wild animals
  14. scale — size or range
  15. scale — in music
  16. spell — a short time
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. stand — for spectators

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