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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wake — a trail
  4. row — to paddle
  5. row — a line
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. shower — rain
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. stem — to come from
  17. chest — of your body
  18. shower — to wash
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. capital — a city
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. capital — money

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