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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. cold — not warm
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. mug — to rob
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. charge — electricity
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. charge — in control
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. stem — to come from
  12. mug — a cup
  13. band — a ring
  14. mug — a face
  15. spring — a coil
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. band — a music group
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. pitch — completely
  20. spring — of water
  21. charge — a price
  22. cold — an illness
  23. spring — the season
  24. cold — the Cold War

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