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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. present — the time now
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. chest — of your body
  6. spell — letters
  7. present — a gift
  8. press — newspapers
  9. present — there
  10. press — to push
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. spell — magic
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. press — a publisher
  15. chest — a box
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mate — a friend
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. spell — a short time
  20. mine — for digging
  21. chest — of your body
  22. plane — a tool
  23. mate — a partner
  24. stem — to come from

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