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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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468
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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. snap — to click
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bear — the animal
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. kid — to tease
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. hand — help
  20. kid — child
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. hand — in cards
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. plane — a tool

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