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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. snap — to click
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. rule — a law
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. rule — government
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. stem — to come from
  13. bulb — for light
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — to trim
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. tear — from crying
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. bulb — for light
  23. pass — a permit
  24. stem — a stem cell

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