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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. wind — moving air
  3. season — of the year
  4. rule — a law
  5. pit — a hole
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. shower — rain
  13. wax — to grow
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. shower — to wash
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. pit — in a race
  19. rule — government
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. season — in sport
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. rule — to rule out

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