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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. spring — of water
  3. stem — to come from
  4. face — to confront
  5. dip — to sink
  6. chest — of your body
  7. cue — for pool
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. cue — a signal
  11. face — part of the head
  12. cue — a hint
  13. chest — of your body
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — a trail
  18. spring — a coil
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. face — to point toward
  22. chest — a box
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. spring — the season

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