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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. mine — for digging
  4. stem — to come from
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. shower — to wash
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. last — to go on
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. last — finally
  14. lie — to recline
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. shower — rain
  17. last — final
  18. fan — a supporter

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