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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. lie — to recline
  3. mate — to breed
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — to come from
  6. land — a country
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. vault — a safe
  9. rest — what's left
  10. field — a subject
  11. shower — rain
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. field — farmland
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. land — ground
  16. mate — a partner
  17. rest — what's left
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. land — to come down
  21. field — for sport
  22. rest — a break
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. shower — to wash

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