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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 116 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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. stem — to come from
  3. march — music
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. march — the month
  6. lean — to bend
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. cell — a phone
  11. object — an aim
  12. cold — not warm
  13. rash — a series
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. object — a thing
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. march — the month
  18. rash — hasty
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cold — an illness
  21. object — to protest
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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