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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 120 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. tube — a container
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ground — crushed
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. tube — the underground
  17. kid — child
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. stem — to come from
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. ground — a position
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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