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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. stem — to come from
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mine — for digging
  6. kid — child
  7. cell — a phone
  8. mark — a trace
  9. rule — a law
  10. key — the most important part
  11. branch — a division
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. kid — to tease
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. rule — government
  16. cell — in biology
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. key — for a lock
  24. key — in music

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