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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 quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. sharp — clever
  3. tube — a container
  4. track — a song
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. court — of a king
  7. tube — the underground
  8. court — for sport
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. track — to keep track
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. mine — for digging
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. track — a path
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. court — of law
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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