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

Word bank: kid · stem · leaves · lash · file · cell · rule · fall

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. fall — to drop
  6. rule — a law
  7. cell — in biology
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. fall — to drop
  10. rule — government
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. fall — the season
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. file — a line of people
  18. file — a tool
  19. cell — a phone
  20. kid — to tease
  21. file — a document
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. leaves — to go away

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