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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. court — of law
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. stand — to bear
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of a king
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. game — wild animals
  13. current — happening now
  14. spring — the season
  15. season — of the year
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. current — of water
  19. current — electric
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — of water
  22. season — in sport
  23. stem — to come from
  24. game — a match

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