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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. kick — in football
  4. current — happening now
  5. last — finally
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. tube — the underground
  9. spring — a coil
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. current — electric
  12. spring — the season
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. stem — to come from
  17. spring — of water
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — an injury
  20. last — final
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. current — of water
  23. tube — a container
  24. stem — a stem cell

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