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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. last — to go on
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. game — wild animals
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. last — finally
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. last — final
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. stand — to bear
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. mark — a grade
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. mark — a trace
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. mine — for digging
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. arm — part of the body
  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