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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. stem — to come from
  3. snap — to click
  4. land — a country
  5. cell — a phone
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. band — a ring
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. cell — in biology
  13. land — ground
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. pound — a weight
  22. land — to come down
  23. band — a music group
  24. pound — for dogs

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