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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. scale — in music
  4. net — after costs
  5. fork — in a road
  6. vault — a safe
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. net — for catching
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. cell — a phone
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. stem — to come from
  16. scale — size or range
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. cell — in biology
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. kick — in football
  24. net — in sport

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