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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. shower — to wash
  4. pop — to visit
  5. prune — to trim
  6. row — to paddle
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. suit — clothes
  9. prune — to trim
  10. game — wild animals
  11. pop — soda
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. shower — rain
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. row — a line
  18. stem — to come from
  19. pop — music
  20. game — a match
  21. suit — to fit
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. suit — in cards
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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