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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. stem — to come from
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. game — a match
  7. file — a tool
  8. game — wild animals
  9. file — a line of people
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. cue — for pool
  13. snap — to click
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bore — to tire
  16. perch — the fish
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. cue — a signal
  20. file — a document
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. cue — a hint
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — size or range

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