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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 took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. perch — the fish
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. shower — to wash
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. bass — low music
  7. stem — to come from
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. bass — the fish
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. cap — of ice
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. mine — for digging
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cap — a hat
  19. band — a ring
  20. cap — a lid
  21. fork — in a road
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bass — the instrument

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