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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. land — ground
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. land — a country
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. dip — to sink
  7. spring — the season
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. plane — a tool
  10. land — to come down
  11. spring — of water
  12. rock — music
  13. stem — to come from
  14. kick — in football
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. rock — a stone
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. spring — a coil
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. plane — in geometry

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