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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 120 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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. pitch — completely
  3. spring — the season
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. prune — to trim
  6. snap — to click
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rash — a series
  13. degree — temperature
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. spring — of water
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rash — hasty
  21. spring — a coil
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. stem — to come from

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