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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. stem — to come from
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. pit — in a race
  6. track — to keep track
  7. kid — child
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — of ice
  10. key — the most important part
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. key — for a lock
  13. key — in music
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. capital — a city
  17. track — a path
  18. capital — money
  19. track — a song
  20. kid — to tease
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. pit — a hole
  23. cap — a lid
  24. pitcher — a jug

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