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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. last — to go on
  3. stem — to come from
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. last — finally
  8. cell — a phone
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. cue — a hint
  11. last — final
  12. press — to push
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. cell — in biology
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. saw — the tool
  17. cue — for pool
  18. press — newspapers
  19. sharp — clever
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. cue — a signal
  22. saw — the tool
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. press — a publisher

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