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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. season — in sport
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. pass — a permit
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. mine — for digging
  9. chest — of your body
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. chest — a box
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. ground — a position
  19. vault — a safe
  20. season — of the year
  21. ground — the earth
  22. stem — to come from
  23. ground — crushed
  24. bowl — a football final

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