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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. bass — the fish
  4. chair — a leader
  5. track — a song
  6. track — a path
  7. track — to keep track
  8. fall — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bass — low music
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. cap — of ice
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. cap — a lid
  18. cap — a hat
  19. wound — an injury
  20. date — the fruit
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. fall — to drop
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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