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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 124 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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. row — to paddle
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. stem — to come from
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. fall — to drop
  8. toast — bread
  9. mate — to breed
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. fall — the season
  12. mate — a partner
  13. band — a ring
  14. fall — to drop
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a line of people
  19. row — a line
  20. file — a document
  21. band — a music group
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. mate — a friend
  24. stem — of a plant

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