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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pop — music
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. rest — what's left
  5. cell — a phone
  6. prune — to trim
  7. last — finally
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — a series
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. last — to go on
  12. rest — a break
  13. last — final
  14. rest — what's left
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. cell — in biology
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pop — soda
  22. season — in sport
  23. season — of the year
  24. stem — to come from

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