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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. kid — child
  3. capital — a city
  4. last — final
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. capital — money
  7. last — finally
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. kid — to tease
  11. last — to go on
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bore — to tire
  14. pass — a permit
  15. tube — the underground
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — to push
  22. tube — a container
  23. stem — to come from
  24. bore — gave birth

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