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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. cold — an illness
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. rash — hasty
  6. spell — magic
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. mine — for digging
  13. stem — to come from
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rock — a stone
  16. rock — music
  17. spell — a short time
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. rash — a series
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. cold — not warm
  24. spell — letters

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