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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 big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. tear — to rip
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. spell — a short time
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. tear — from crying
  8. stem — to come from
  9. fork — in a road
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. track — a song
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. row — to paddle
  14. track — a path
  15. tear — from crying
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. track — to keep track
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. last — finally
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. date — the fruit
  22. spell — letters
  23. spell — magic
  24. row — a line

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