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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 120 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. present — the time now
  3. present — a gift
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. season — of the year
  6. fall — to drop
  7. land — to come down
  8. land — a country
  9. present — there
  10. race — the arms race
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. race — humankind
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. land — ground
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. fall — the season
  20. game — wild animals
  21. fall — to drop
  22. race — a contest
  23. stem — to come from
  24. game — a match

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