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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. mate — a friend
  3. cell — a phone
  4. mate — a partner
  5. cell — in biology
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. mate — to breed
  8. firm — a company
  9. stem — to come from
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. spell — letters
  13. foot — a measure
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. spell — magic
  16. firm — decided
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. spell — a short time

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