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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. march — music
  3. ground — a position
  4. rush — hurry
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. ground — crushed
  7. cap — a hat
  8. march — the month
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. file — a document
  12. cap — of ice
  13. march — the month
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. file — a tool
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ground — the earth
  19. cap — a lid
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. file — a line of people
  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