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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. last — final
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. present — the time now
  6. kid — to tease
  7. last — finally
  8. staff — employees
  9. kid — child
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. game — wild animals
  13. present — a gift
  14. last — to go on
  15. staff — a stick
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. present — there
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. game — a match
  24. staff — employees

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