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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 124 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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. rock — music
  4. ground — crushed
  5. object — an aim
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. stem — to come from
  8. rock — a stone
  9. swing — music
  10. shower — rain
  11. wind — moving air
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. wind — moving air
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. object — a thing
  16. swing — to play on
  17. shower — to wash
  18. season — of the year
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. ground — the earth
  21. swing — in golf
  22. object — to protest
  23. season — in sport
  24. ground — a position

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