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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. prune — to trim
  4. swing — music
  5. cell — in biology
  6. pit — a hole
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. swing — in golf
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. prune — to trim
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. stem — to come from
  19. pit — in a race
  20. perch — the fish
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. swing — to play on
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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