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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. wound — an injury
  4. chest — of your body
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. firm — steady
  7. wound — an injury
  8. spell — a short time
  9. chest — a box
  10. chest — of your body
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. firm — a company
  13. firm — decided
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. spell — letters
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. saw — the tool
  19. capital — a city
  20. spell — magic
  21. vault — a safe
  22. capital — money
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  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