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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 big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. last — to go on
  3. mate — a partner
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. chest — of your body
  7. rule — government
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. chest — a box
  10. rule — a law
  11. cell — a phone
  12. tear — to rip
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. tear — from crying
  15. chest — of your body
  16. tear — from crying
  17. last — final
  18. stem — to come from
  19. mate — to breed
  20. last — finally
  21. cell — in biology
  22. mate — a friend
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. cell — in a prison

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