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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 seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. can — to be able to
  4. rash — hasty
  5. spring — of water
  6. spring — the season
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. stem — to come from
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — money
  13. can — a tin
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. spring — a coil
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. saw — the tool
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. can — a tin
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. rash — a series
  23. saw — the tool
  24. calf — a young animal

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