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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. stem — to come from
  4. wound — an injury
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. cold — an illness
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. mine — for digging
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. wound — an injury
  17. charge — a price
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. charge — in control
  21. charge — electricity
  22. plane — a tool
  23. cold — not warm
  24. hide — to keep secret

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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