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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  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. pop — to visit
  2. stem — to come from
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. hand — help
  6. squash — the sport
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bank — for money
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. object — to protest
  11. pop — music
  12. dip — to sink
  13. hand — in cards
  14. pop — soda
  15. squash — to crush
  16. shower — rain
  17. bank — for money
  18. object — a thing
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. bank — of a river
  22. object — an aim
  23. shower — to wash
  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