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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. stem — to come from
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. court — of law
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. court — of a king
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. rule — government
  12. shower — to wash
  13. bass — the fish
  14. shower — rain
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. snap — to click
  19. rule — a law
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bass — low music
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. court — for sport

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