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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. stem — to come from
  4. capital — money
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. suit — in cards
  7. mate — to breed
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bear — the animal
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. suit — clothes
  14. suit — to fit
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. sharp — clever
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. band — a music group
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. capital — a city
  23. snap — to click
  24. mate — a friend

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