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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. There's no middle ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. ground — a position
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. spring — a coil
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. branch — a division
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. stem — to come from
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. ground — the earth
  16. ground — crushed
  17. sharp — clever
  18. spring — of water
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. spring — the season
  24. sharp — with an edge

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