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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 116 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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. mug — a face
  3. current — of water
  4. ball — a dance
  5. track — a path
  6. ball — a great time
  7. mug — to rob
  8. last — to go on
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. last — final
  11. mug — a cup
  12. last — finally
  13. court — for sport
  14. current — electric
  15. stem — to come from
  16. current — happening now
  17. face — to confront
  18. court — of law
  19. face — part of the head
  20. track — a song
  21. track — to keep track
  22. court — of a king
  23. face — to point toward
  24. stem — of a plant

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