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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. foot — a measure
  3. dip — to sink
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. spell — magic
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. saw — the tool
  8. march — the month
  9. saw — the tool
  10. rush — hurry
  11. spell — a short time
  12. march — the month
  13. branch — a division
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. spell — letters
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. march — music
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — a sauce

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