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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 116 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. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. mug — to rob
  3. mug — a cup
  4. game — wild animals
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. game — a match
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. last — final
  9. mug — a face
  10. stem — to come from
  11. court — of a king
  12. rock — music
  13. last — finally
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. court — of law
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. rash — hasty
  19. last — to go on
  20. court — for sport
  21. rock — a stone
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. rash — a series

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