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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. march — the month
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. stem — to come from
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. chest — a box
  9. march — the month
  10. dip — to sink
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. chest — of your body
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pit — a hole
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. bear — the animal
  18. march — music
  19. bear — the animal
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. pit — in a race
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. patient — a sick person

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