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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. firm — a company
  7. dip — to sink
  8. cap — a hat
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. capital — money
  11. cap — of ice
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. last — finally
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. last — final
  16. stem — to come from
  17. cap — a lid
  18. last — to go on
  19. firm — steady
  20. spring — a coil
  21. firm — decided
  22. capital — a city
  23. perch — the fish
  24. spring — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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