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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. scale — size or range
  4. rush — hurry
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. pit — in a race
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. tear — to rip
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pit — a hole
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. scale — in music
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. sharp — clever
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. stem — to come from
  24. tear — from crying

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