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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. shower — to wash
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — a stick
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. shower — rain
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. pitch — completely
  20. staff — employees
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. kick — in football
  24. mine — for digging

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