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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. staff — a stick
  3. stem — to come from
  4. cap — a hat
  5. wound — an injury
  6. cap — of ice
  7. ground — a position
  8. bore — to tire
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ground — crushed
  11. wound — an injury
  12. staff — employees
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. staff — employees
  18. row — a line
  19. sharp — clever
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. bore — to drill
  24. stem — of a plant

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