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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. stem — to come from
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. cell — in biology
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. spell — magic
  10. cell — a phone
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. bass — low music
  13. bore — to tire
  14. spell — a short time
  15. prune — to trim
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bore — to drill
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. bass — the fish
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. prune — to trim
  24. spell — letters

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