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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. land — to come down
  3. shower — to wash
  4. fine — high quality
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. stock — goods
  7. land — a country
  8. stock — shares
  9. land — ground
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. bulb — for light
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. last — to go on
  14. shower — rain
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. last — finally
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. dip — to sink
  21. last — final
  22. fine — all right
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. dip — a sauce

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