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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
468
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: pit · stem · squash · sharp · leaves · mine · plane · wind

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. mine — for digging
  4. squash — to crush
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. wind — moving air
  7. plane — a tool
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. pit — in a race
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. pit — a hole
  15. wind — moving air
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. squash — the sport
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. stem — a stem cell

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