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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 124 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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. march — the month
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. spring — the season
  7. swing — to play on
  8. swing — in golf
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. spell — letters
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. spell — magic
  14. rash — a series
  15. rash — hasty
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. spring — of water
  18. stem — to come from
  19. march — the month
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spell — a short time
  23. swing — music
  24. cabinet — ministers

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