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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. object — an aim
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — of water
  5. track — a path
  6. perch — the fish
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. last — final
  9. track — a song
  10. rush — hurry
  11. file — a document
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. track — to keep track
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. object — a thing
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. spring — the season
  19. last — finally
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — to come from
  24. object — to protest

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