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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 120 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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. pop — music
  3. stem — to come from
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. pop — soda
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. tear — to rip
  10. capital — a city
  11. deal — to handle
  12. pop — to visit
  13. tear — from crying
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. capital — money
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stem — a stem cell

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