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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. season — in sport
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. snap — to click
  9. net — after costs
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. stem — to come from
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. season — of the year
  15. mine — for digging
  16. tube — the underground
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. tube — a container
  19. net — for catching
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. net — 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