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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. game — wild animals
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. plane — a tool
  7. hand — in cards
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. pop — to visit
  10. stock — shares
  11. stem — to come from
  12. shower — to wash
  13. game — a match
  14. chair — a leader
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. pop — soda
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — help
  23. shower — rain
  24. stock — goods

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