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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. press — a publisher
  3. ground — crushed
  4. kick — in football
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. press — to push
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. drill — army training
  9. ground — the earth
  10. rash — hasty
  11. prune — to trim
  12. rash — a series
  13. drill — a practice
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. drill — the tool
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. press — newspapers
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. prune — to trim
  20. ball — a great time
  21. ball — a dance
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. ground — a position
  24. stem — a stem cell

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