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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 120 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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. cell — a phone
  3. stem — to come from
  4. band — a music group
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. pound — a weight
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. band — a ring
  12. game — a match
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. scale — size or range
  16. scale — in music
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. game — wild animals
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. season — of the year
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. season — in sport

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