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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. ball — a dance
  3. bore — to tire
  4. lean — thin
  5. present — there
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. file — a line of people
  9. wound — an injury
  10. present — a gift
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. stem — to come from
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bore — to drill
  18. ball — a great time
  19. snap — to click
  20. file — a tool
  21. present — the time now
  22. file — a document
  23. lean — to bend
  24. bore — gave birth

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