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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. file — a line of people
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. file — a tool
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. wake — a trail
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. wound — an injury
  14. sharp — clever
  15. wound — an injury
  16. file — a document
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. leaves — lets stay

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