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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. present — a gift
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. tear — from crying
  7. present — there
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. cell — a phone
  10. row — a line
  11. tear — to rip
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. rush — hurry
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. pass — a permit
  19. tear — from crying
  20. row — to paddle
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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