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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. tear — to rip
  3. last — final
  4. mate — a friend
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. spring — a coil
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. mate — to breed
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — completely
  12. fine — all right
  13. spring — of water
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. stem — to come from
  16. tear — from crying
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. last — finally
  19. mate — a partner
  20. fine — high quality
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. tear — from crying
  23. last — to go on
  24. trunk — of a car

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