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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. last — final
  7. present — there
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. bore — to tire
  10. last — finally
  11. land — a country
  12. roll — a cake
  13. mug — a face
  14. last — to go on
  15. land — to come down
  16. present — a gift
  17. roll — a list
  18. bore — to drill
  19. present — the time now
  20. land — ground
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. mug — a cup

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