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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 116 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'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. board — a committee
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. saw — the tool
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. board — to get on
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. last — final
  10. saw — the tool
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. court — of law
  14. court — for sport
  15. bore — to drill
  16. wound — an injury
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. court — of a king
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. bore — to tire
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. mine — for digging
  24. wound — an injury

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