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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. net — after costs
  4. shower — rain
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. pit — a hole
  7. net — in sport
  8. charge — electricity
  9. last — final
  10. mine — for digging
  11. charge — a price
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. pit — in a race
  14. charge — in control
  15. shower — to wash
  16. last — to go on
  17. net — for catching
  18. last — finally
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. roll — a cake
  23. roll — a list
  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