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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · hand · pop · stem · present · lash

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. stem — to come from
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. hand — help
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. tear — from crying
  7. present — there
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pop — music
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. pop — soda
  13. hand — in cards
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. present — a gift
  16. tear — to rip
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. present — the time now

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