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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  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. capital — money
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. rest — a break
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. stem — to come from
  8. capital — a city
  9. rest — what's left
  10. plane — a tool
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. prune — to trim
  13. rest — what's left
  14. spell — letters
  15. prune — to trim
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. spell — magic
  20. snap — to click
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. stem — of a plant
  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