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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 116 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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. mate — a partner
  4. last — to go on
  5. spell — a short time
  6. last — finally
  7. last — final
  8. stem — to come from
  9. mate — to breed
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. spring — a coil
  16. spring — the season
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. season — of the year
  19. spell — letters
  20. mate — a friend
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. spring — of water
  23. season — in sport
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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