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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 120 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — to come from
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. bass — the fish
  7. present — there
  8. prune — to trim
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. present — the time now
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. saw — the tool
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. present — a gift
  17. tear — from crying
  18. saw — the tool
  19. branch — a division
  20. bass — low music
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. prune — to trim
  24. tear — to rip

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