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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. saw — the tool
  3. drill — a practice
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. kick — in football
  7. drill — the tool
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. shower — to wash
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. row — a line
  14. wind — moving air
  15. shower — rain
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. row — to paddle
  20. wind — moving air
  21. drill — army training
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. row — a quarrel
  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