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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. wind — moving air
  3. fall — to drop
  4. wind — moving air
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. fall — to drop
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. squash — the sport
  14. prune — to trim
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. rash — hasty
  20. fall — the season
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. rash — a series
  23. prune — to trim
  24. stem — a stem cell

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