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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. firm — steady
  4. land — a country
  5. cap — a hat
  6. bass — the fish
  7. land — ground
  8. stem — to come from
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. kid — child
  12. cap — a lid
  13. firm — a company
  14. bass — low music
  15. firm — decided
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. cap — of ice
  18. bass — the instrument

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