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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. bound — obliged
  5. bound — certain
  6. land — to come down
  7. firm — a company
  8. net — in sport
  9. rule — government
  10. land — a country
  11. mate — a partner
  12. mate — to breed
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. land — ground
  15. mate — a friend
  16. firm — decided
  17. net — after costs
  18. firm — steady
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. bound — tied together
  21. row — a line
  22. row — to paddle
  23. net — for catching
  24. rule — a law

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