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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. snap — to click
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. spring — a coil
  9. pit — a hole
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. lean — to bend
  12. charge — a price
  13. stem — to come from
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. pit — in a race
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. charge — in control
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — the season
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. lean — thin
  24. trunk — of a tree

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