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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. kid — child
  3. cap — of ice
  4. mug — a face
  5. spring — of water
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. kid — to tease
  11. mug — a cup
  12. wake — a trail
  13. stem — to come from
  14. field — farmland
  15. spring — a coil
  16. cap — a lid
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. spring — the season
  20. mug — to rob
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. cap — a hat

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