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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — to come from
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. saw — the tool
  6. bat — the animal
  7. wound — an injury
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. lie — to recline
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. wound — an injury
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. march — music
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. saw — the tool
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. march — the month
  20. track — a path
  21. track — a song
  22. track — to keep track
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. cabinet — ministers

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