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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. track — a song
  5. charge — a price
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. rock — music
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. stem — to come from
  11. track — a path
  12. bat — the animal
  13. track — to keep track
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. charge — electricity
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. charge — in control
  21. rock — a stone
  22. wound — an injury
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. rock — to move gently

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