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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: ground · stem · spring · charge · clip · cell · march · toast

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. march — the month
  3. clip — to cut
  4. charge — in control
  5. march — music
  6. charge — a price
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. march — the month
  9. ground — the earth
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. stem — to come from
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. charge — electricity
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. ground — crushed
  17. clip — for paper
  18. spring — a coil
  19. spring — the season
  20. cell — in biology
  21. clip — a video
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. toast — bread
  24. ground — a position

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