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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. bat — the animal
  4. track — to keep track
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. land — ground
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. stem — to come from
  12. land — a country
  13. land — to come down
  14. cell — a phone
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. track — a path
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. bass — low music
  19. track — a song
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. cell — in biology
  22. season — of the year
  23. season — in sport
  24. bass — the fish

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