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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: hide · mouse · wind · file · ground · stem · fine · lie

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. fine — high quality
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ground — a position
  7. stem — to come from
  8. wind — moving air
  9. file — a tool
  10. ground — crushed
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a line of people
  15. ground — the earth
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. wind — moving air
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. lie — to recline
  21. fine — all right
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. lie — an untruth

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