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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 120 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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. chest — of your body
  3. present — there
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. file — a tool
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. wound — an injury
  10. club — for golf
  11. rock — a stone
  12. wound — an injury
  13. club — for dancing
  14. rock — music
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. file — a document
  18. chest — a box
  19. file — a line of people
  20. club — a group
  21. present — the time now
  22. chest — of your body
  23. plane — a tool
  24. present — a gift

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