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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 had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. saw — the tool
  3. fork — in a road
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. fall — the season
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. stem — to come from
  9. cap — a hat
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — final
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. last — finally
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. row — to paddle
  18. fall — to drop
  19. row — a line
  20. cap — a lid
  21. cap — of ice
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. stem — of a plant
  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