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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. court — for sport
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cap — a lid
  9. court — of a king
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. cap — a hat
  12. mine — for digging
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. cell — in biology
  17. snap — to click
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. court — of law
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — a phone
  23. pass — a permit
  24. stem — to come from

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