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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  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. sharp — exactly
  2. stem — to come from
  3. fall — to drop
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. file — a line of people
  6. sharp — clever
  7. object — an aim
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. object — a thing
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. vault — a safe
  14. season — in sport
  15. fall — to drop
  16. object — to protest
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. file — a tool
  19. season — of the year
  20. fall — the season
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. file — a document
  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