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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 were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. wake — a trail
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — army training
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. game — a match
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. stem — to come from
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — in sport
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — size or range
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — money
  21. drill — a practice
  22. game — wild animals
  23. season — of the year
  24. kick — a thrill

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