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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. snap — to click
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. mine — for digging
  5. craft — boats
  6. field — farmland
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. pit — in a race
  9. wake — a trail
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. field — for sport
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. ball — a great time
  14. field — a subject
  15. stem — to come from
  16. craft — a skill
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. ball — a dance
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. mine — an explosive

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