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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. toast — bread
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. chest — a box
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. chest — of your body
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. chest — of your body
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. stem — to come from
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. lean — thin
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. cell — in biology
  22. snap — to click
  23. lean — to bend
  24. trunk — of a tree

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