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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 120 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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. stem — to come from
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. perch — the fish
  6. mate — a friend
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. tear — from crying
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. bass — the fish
  12. vault — a safe
  13. tear — from crying
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. mate — a partner
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. tear — to rip
  18. dip — to sink
  19. bass — low music
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mate — to breed

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