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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. toast — bread
  3. present — the time now
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. present — a gift
  7. wound — an injury
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. spring — the season
  12. wound — an injury
  13. spring — a coil
  14. stand — to bear
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. vault — a safe
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. present — there
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. spring — of water
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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