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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. bat — the animal
  4. mine — for digging
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. stock — goods
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. kid — to tease
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. staff — a stick
  13. staff — employees
  14. sharp — clever
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. stock — shares
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. staff — employees
  24. kid — child

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