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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. last — finally
  3. bat — the animal
  4. track — a path
  5. stem — to come from
  6. last — final
  7. track — a song
  8. key — in music
  9. face — to confront
  10. track — to keep track
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. key — for a lock
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. last — to go on
  16. face — part of the head
  17. face — to point toward
  18. key — the most important part

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