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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. squash — to crush
  4. game — wild animals
  5. clip — to cut
  6. mate — a friend
  7. cap — a hat
  8. season — in sport
  9. stem — to come from
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. season — of the year
  12. mate — to breed
  13. cap — of ice
  14. band — a ring
  15. mate — a partner
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. band — a music group
  18. clip — a video
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. cap — a lid
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. clip — for paper
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. squash — the sport

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