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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 120 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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wind — moving air
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. saw — the tool
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. tube — the underground
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — money
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. saw — the tool
  20. tube — a container
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. wind — moving air

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