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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. pit — in a race
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. pit — a hole
  6. stem — to come from
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. fine — all right
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — the season
  13. cell — in biology
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. cell — a phone
  18. fine — high quality
  19. spring — of water
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. straw — dry grass

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