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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. hand — help
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. march — the month
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. prune — to trim
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. march — music
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stem — to come from
  16. prune — to trim
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. march — the month

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