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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. season — in sport
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. stem — to come from
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. land — a country
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. ground — a position
  9. ground — crushed
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. snap — to click
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — ground
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. ground — the earth
  16. net — after costs
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. net — in sport
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. season — of the year
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. net — for catching

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