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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  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. track — a path
  2. stem — to come from
  3. spring — a coil
  4. face — to confront
  5. track — a song
  6. pass — a permit
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. tube — the underground
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. face — part of the head
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. tube — a container
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. season — of the year
  18. season — in sport
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — of water
  22. face — to point toward
  23. track — to keep track
  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