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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. row — a line
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. cell — a phone
  5. stem — to come from
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. rest — what's left
  11. stock — shares
  12. rest — a break
  13. wind — moving air
  14. cell — in biology
  15. kick — in football
  16. prune — to trim
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. wind — moving air
  21. stock — goods
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. prune — to trim
  24. rest — what's left

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