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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — in sport
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. stem — to come from
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. pop — music
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. pop — to visit
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. snap — to click
  16. pop — soda
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. cold — not warm
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. rush — hurry
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — an illness

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