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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  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. cold — an illness
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. saw — the tool
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. ground — a position
  6. stem — to come from
  7. prune — to trim
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. saw — the tool
  17. prune — to trim
  18. cold — not warm
  19. wax — to grow
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. ground — the earth
  23. prune — the fruit
  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