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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. bound — certain
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. spell — magic
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bound — tied together
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. drill — the tool
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. hand — in cards
  13. drill — a practice
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. spell — a short time
  17. bound — obliged
  18. stem — to come from
  19. hand — help
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. spell — letters
  22. drill — army training
  23. season — of the year
  24. season — in sport

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