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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. row — a line
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. spring — a coil
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. stem — to come from
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. pound — a weight
  14. spring — of water
  15. sharp — clever
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. wind — moving air
  21. spring — the season
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. row — to paddle

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