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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 had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. can — a tin
  4. pound — a weight
  5. can — to be able to
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. land — a country
  9. file — a document
  10. file — a tool
  11. game — wild animals
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. file — a line of people
  16. row — a line
  17. game — a match
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. fine — high quality
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. fine — all right
  23. row — to paddle
  24. can — a tin

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