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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  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. spell — a short time
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. season — in sport
  4. spell — magic
  5. season — of the year
  6. mine — for digging
  7. foot — a measure
  8. spell — letters
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. prune — to trim
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. prune — to trim
  19. mark — a trace
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. mark — a grade
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. stem — to come from
  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