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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. bore — to tire
  5. court — of a king
  6. file — a line of people
  7. craft — a skill
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. file — a tool
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. file — a document
  12. craft — boats
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. court — of law
  15. bore — to drill
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. stem — to come from
  18. arm — part of the body

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