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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. season — of the year
  9. bat — the animal
  10. stem — to come from
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. track — to keep track
  16. band — a ring
  17. lean — thin
  18. band — a music group
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. lean — to bend
  21. season — in sport
  22. track — a path
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. season — to add flavour

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