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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. court — of a king
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. court — of law
  7. roll — a list
  8. tear — to rip
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. court — for sport
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. tear — from crying
  14. roll — a cake
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. spell — magic
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. tear — from crying
  20. spell — letters
  21. stem — to come from
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. spell — a short time
  24. stem — a stem cell

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