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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. rest — what's left
  4. band — a music group
  5. rest — what's left
  6. can — to be able to
  7. can — a tin
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. shower — to wash
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. can — a tin
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. shower — rain
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. game — wild animals
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. rest — a break
  22. pass — a permit
  23. band — a ring
  24. stem — to come from

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