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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. spell — letters
  3. stem — to come from
  4. bear — the animal
  5. cell — in biology
  6. spell — a short time
  7. press — to push
  8. press — a publisher
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rush — hurry
  13. spell — magic
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. cold — an illness
  20. press — newspapers
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. fine — high quality
  23. bear — the animal
  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