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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. cue — for pool
  3. pit — in a race
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. perch — the fish
  8. cue — a hint
  9. wax — to grow
  10. stem — to come from
  11. track — a path
  12. cue — a signal
  13. pit — a hole
  14. track — to keep track
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — not warm
  21. track — a song
  22. wake — a trail
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. stem — a stem cell

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