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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. capital — a city
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stem — to come from
  8. cold — not warm
  9. capital — money
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — the animal
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. deal — to handle
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bore — to tire
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. capital — a big letter

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