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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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. lean — to rest against
  4. spring — of water
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. lean — to bend
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — a coil
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — a subject
  15. bat — the animal
  16. race — humankind
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. lean — thin
  20. race — the arms race
  21. race — a contest
  22. field — for sport
  23. kick — in football
  24. bat — in an idiom

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