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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. fork — in a road
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. pitch — completely
  6. stem — to come from
  7. clip — a video
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. firm — a company
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. firm — decided
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. wake — a trail
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. clip — for paper
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. bat — the animal
  22. clip — to cut
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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