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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. fine — high quality
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. prune — to trim
  5. stem — to come from
  6. last — finally
  7. pit — a hole
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mark — a grade
  10. pit — in a race
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fine — all right
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. last — to go on
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. mark — a trace
  17. tear — from crying
  18. field — for sport
  19. tear — from crying
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — a subject
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. last — final
  24. fine — a penalty

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