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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. game — wild animals
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. mug — to rob
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. hand — help
  8. present — a gift
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. game — a match
  11. stem — to come from
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. mug — a face
  14. court — for sport
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. present — there
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. cell — in biology
  19. court — of law
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. cell — a phone
  22. mug — a cup
  23. court — of a king
  24. hand — in cards

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