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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. mark — a trace
  4. saw — the tool
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. cold — not warm
  9. stem — to come from
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. season — of the year
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. saw — the tool
  14. tear — to rip
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. mark — a grade
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. season — in sport
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — an illness

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