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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. stem — to come from
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. row — to paddle
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. hand — help
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. bat — the animal
  14. saw — the tool
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. snap — to click
  18. roll — a list
  19. roll — a cake
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. hand — in cards
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. saw — the tool

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