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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. cell — a phone
  3. spell — a short time
  4. press — to push
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. spell — magic
  11. cell — in biology
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. prune — to trim
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. press — a publisher
  16. chest — of your body
  17. wake — a trail
  18. chest — a box
  19. prune — to trim
  20. sharp — clever
  21. spell — letters
  22. chest — of your body
  23. press — newspapers
  24. stem — to come from

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