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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. spring — the season
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. charge — in control
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. lie — to recline
  11. bat — the animal
  12. cell — a phone
  13. prune — to trim
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. spring — a coil
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. stem — to come from
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. charge — a price
  20. charge — electricity
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. spring — of water
  24. stem — a stem cell

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