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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. squash — to crush
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. march — the month
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. march — the month
  15. rash — hasty
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. squash — the sport
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. bat — the animal
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. rash — a series
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. march — music
  24. stem — to come from

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