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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. last — finally
  3. shower — rain
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. last — to go on
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. shower — to wash
  13. staff — a stick
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. staff — employees
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. rush — hurry
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. last — final
  20. stem — to come from
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. staff — employees
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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