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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 ________________ took off on time.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. track — a path
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. wind — moving air
  6. chest — a box
  7. wind — moving air
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. track — to keep track
  10. track — a song
  11. chest — of your body
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. file — a line of people
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. stem — to come from
  18. file — a document
  19. chest — of your body
  20. file — a tool
  21. fork — in a road
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. plane — a tool

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