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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. tear — from crying
  4. spring — of water
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. stem — to come from
  9. staff — a stick
  10. mug — a face
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. mug — to rob
  13. spring — the season
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — in cards
  16. squash — the sport
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. tear — from crying
  19. spring — a coil
  20. squash — to crush
  21. staff — employees
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. tear — to rip
  24. staff — employees

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