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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. lean — to bend
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. mark — a trace
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. kid — child
  10. lean — thin
  11. stem — to come from
  12. toast — bread
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. mark — a grade
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. prune — to trim
  17. kid — to tease
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. deal — to handle
  21. prune — to trim
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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