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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 116 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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. stem — to come from
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. rash — a series
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. land — ground
  8. cell — in biology
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. rash — hasty
  14. pit — in a race
  15. snap — to click
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. pit — a hole
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. press — to push
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — newspapers
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. land — a country
  24. cell — a phone

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