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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. file — a tool
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. saw — the tool
  5. staff — employees
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — finally
  10. file — a line of people
  11. scale — in music
  12. staff — employees
  13. staff — a stick
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. last — final
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. stem — to come from
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. file — a document
  21. rush — hurry
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. saw — the tool

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