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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. chest — of your body
  3. spring — the season
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. object — a thing
  6. spring — of water
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. mate — to breed
  11. roll — a list
  12. stem — to come from
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. chest — a box
  15. field — a subject
  16. mate — a partner
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. spring — a coil
  19. field — for sport
  20. chest — of your body
  21. field — farmland
  22. object — to protest
  23. mate — a friend
  24. object — an aim

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