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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. pass — a permit
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. spring — of water
  6. pitch — completely
  7. bound — certain
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. shower — to wash
  10. spring — the season
  11. bound — tied together
  12. shower — rain
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. bound — obliged
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. bore — to tire
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. stem — to come from
  20. plane — a tool
  21. bore — to drill
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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