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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: date · land · tear · game · bear · pop · mate · stem

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. bear — the animal
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. tear — from crying
  5. stem — to come from
  6. mate — to breed
  7. land — a country
  8. land — ground
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — to rip
  12. date — the fruit
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. land — to come down
  15. game — a match
  16. pop — soda
  17. game — wild animals
  18. mate — a partner
  19. mate — a friend
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. pop — music

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