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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. spring — of water
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. rock — music
  6. spring — a coil
  7. last — finally
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. rock — a stone
  10. saw — the tool
  11. last — final
  12. saw — the tool
  13. stem — to come from
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. mug — a face
  16. spring — the season
  17. cell — a phone
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. cell — in biology
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. mug — to rob
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. last — to go on
  24. mug — a cup

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