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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. current — happening now
  7. stem — to come from
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. squash — the sport
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. cold — an illness
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — in sport
  17. cold — not warm
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — for light
  20. current — of water
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. squash — to crush
  24. current — electric

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