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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 sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. stem — to come from
  3. wound — an injury
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. fall — to drop
  6. plane — a tool
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. tear — to rip
  10. tear — from crying
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. wound — an injury
  16. fall — to drop
  17. tear — from crying
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. fall — the season
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. rush — hurry
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. leaves — to go away

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