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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. row — a line
  4. drill — army training
  5. stem — to come from
  6. season — of the year
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. club — for dancing
  9. row — to paddle
  10. drill — the tool
  11. season — in sport
  12. ground — a position
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. deal — to handle
  16. file — a document
  17. club — for golf
  18. club — a group
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ground — the earth
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. drill — a practice
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a line of people

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