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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. tube — the underground
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. track — to keep track
  7. tube — a container
  8. bat — the animal
  9. rash — a series
  10. track — a path
  11. suit — clothes
  12. rash — hasty
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. suit — in cards
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. squash — the sport
  17. track — a song
  18. squash — to crush
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. stem — to come from
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. prune — to trim

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