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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. squash — to crush
  3. bark — to shout
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. season — in sport
  11. date — the fruit
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. craft — boats
  14. scale — size or range
  15. stem — to come from
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. squash — the sport
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. craft — a skill
  24. season — of the year

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