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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. swing — in golf
  3. swing — to play on
  4. bank — for money
  5. club — for golf
  6. prune — to trim
  7. content — happy
  8. sharp — clever
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. prune — to trim
  12. rush — hurry
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. club — a group
  17. swing — music
  18. bank — for money
  19. content — the amount
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. club — for dancing
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. bank — of a river

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