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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — of water
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. present — there
  7. spring — a coil
  8. wax — to grow
  9. tear — from crying
  10. fine — high quality
  11. rash — hasty
  12. present — a gift
  13. rash — a series
  14. rest — what's left
  15. tear — to rip
  16. rest — a break
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. tear — from crying
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. present — the time now
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. fine — all right

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