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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. rest — a break
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a tool
  8. tear — from crying
  9. snap — to click
  10. ball — a dance
  11. shower — rain
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. tear — from crying
  14. rest — what's left
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. stem — to come from
  17. tear — to rip
  18. rest — what's left
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. file — a document
  21. ball — a great time
  22. season — of the year
  23. shower — to wash
  24. season — in sport

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