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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 116 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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. prune — to trim
  4. court — of a king
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. court — of law
  7. stem — to come from
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a lid
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cap — a hat
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. rest — a break
  17. court — for sport
  18. key — for a lock
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. rest — what's left
  23. cell — a phone
  24. key — in music

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