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

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. cue — a hint
  3. stem — to come from
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. club — for dancing
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. club — for golf
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. club — a group
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. cue — for pool
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. cue — a signal
  14. sharp — clever
  15. shower — to wash
  16. scale — in music
  17. shower — rain
  18. stem — of a plant

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