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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. firm — decided
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. row — to paddle
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. band — a ring
  9. band — a music group
  10. rock — music
  11. rock — a stone
  12. capital — a city
  13. date — the fruit
  14. season — of the year
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. firm — steady
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. capital — money
  20. season — in sport
  21. firm — a company
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. stem — to come from

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