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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. land — to come down
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. stem — to come from
  8. cell — a phone
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. land — a country
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. sharp — clever
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. hand — help
  20. cell — in biology
  21. pound — a weight
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. land — ground
  24. hand — in cards

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