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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bound — obliged
  4. stem — to come from
  5. bound — certain
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — an injury
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — to grow
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. band — a ring
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. mark — a trace
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. bound — tied together
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. band — a music group
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. mark — a grade

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