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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. face — part of the head
  5. face — to point toward
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. date — the fruit
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — the season
  12. can — a tin
  13. face — to confront
  14. stem — to come from
  15. last — to go on
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. can — a tin
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. can — to be able to
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. spring — of water
  24. last — finally

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