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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. roll — a cake
  3. roll — a list
  4. cue — a signal
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. cue — a hint
  7. rest — what's left
  8. last — to go on
  9. capital — money
  10. cue — for pool
  11. last — finally
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. net — in sport
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — a position
  16. rest — a break
  17. capital — a city
  18. last — final
  19. rest — what's left
  20. net — after costs
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. ground — the earth
  23. net — for catching
  24. roll — on a roll

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