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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. stem — to come from
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. spell — magic
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. spell — letters
  11. shower — to wash
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. spring — a coil
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. shower — rain
  16. rush — hurry
  17. scale — size or range
  18. spring — the season
  19. chair — a leader
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. spring — of water
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. scale — in music

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