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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 124 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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. saw — the tool
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a friend
  12. mate — a partner
  13. stem — to come from
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. date — the fruit
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. saw — the tool
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. ball — a dance
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. stem — a stem cell

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