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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. cold — an illness
  3. file — a document
  4. stem — to come from
  5. capital — money
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. file — a line of people
  10. lean — to bend
  11. cold — not warm
  12. capital — a city
  13. firm — decided
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. lean — thin
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — for digging
  18. file — a tool
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. firm — a company
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. capital — a big letter

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