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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. march — the month
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. date — the fruit
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bulb — for light
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. march — the month
  13. tear — from crying
  14. season — of the year
  15. stem — to come from
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. season — in sport
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. march — music
  22. wax — to grow
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. tear — to rip

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