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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. tear — from crying
  6. drill — the tool
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. stem — to come from
  10. tear — from crying
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. wake — a trail
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. bulb — for light
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. tear — to rip
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. drill — a practice
  22. cell — a phone
  23. drill — army training
  24. cell — in biology

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