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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. present — the time now
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. cold — not warm
  6. board — to get on
  7. roll — a cake
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. roll — a list
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. ground — crushed
  16. board — a committee
  17. ground — the earth
  18. ground — a position
  19. stem — to come from
  20. present — there
  21. wake — a trail
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. cold — an illness

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