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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. mate — a friend
  3. stem — to come from
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. game — a match
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. tear — to rip
  8. ground — crushed
  9. current — electric
  10. game — wild animals
  11. mate — a partner
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. mate — to breed
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. current — of water
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. pass — a permit
  19. current — happening now
  20. ground — a position
  21. tear — from crying
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. tear — from crying
  24. ground — the earth

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