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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. stem — to come from
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. rush — hurry
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. fine — all right
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. spell — magic
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. season — of the year
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. season — in sport
  15. mug — a cup
  16. mug — a face
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a line of people
  19. file — a document
  20. spell — a short time
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. spell — letters
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. fine — high quality

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