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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. spring — the season
  5. spring — a coil
  6. snap — to click
  7. ground — a position
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. chair — a leader
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. stem — to come from
  12. spring — of water
  13. file — a tool
  14. ground — the earth
  15. plane — a tool
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a document
  21. ground — crushed
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. patient — a sick person

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