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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. deal — to handle
  3. stem — to come from
  4. march — music
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. row — a line
  8. stock — shares
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. key — in music
  11. stock — goods
  12. key — for a lock
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. march — the month
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. roll — a cake
  18. cell — in biology
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — to paddle
  21. march — the month
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. roll — a list
  24. key — the most important part

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