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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 120 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. fork — in a road
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. spell — a short time
  5. mine — for digging
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. spell — magic
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. stem — to come from
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. cue — a hint
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. cold — not warm
  14. court — of law
  15. court — for sport
  16. spell — letters
  17. court — of a king
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cue — a signal
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. cue — for pool
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. mine — belonging to me

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