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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. stem — to come from
  4. plane — a tool
  5. tear — from crying
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitch — completely
  9. tube — the underground
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. tear — to rip
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. wake — a trail
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. tube — a container

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