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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. tear — to rip
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — happy
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pit — in a race
  21. pit — a hole
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. branch — a division

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