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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 116 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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. last — final
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. stem — to come from
  6. root — of a word
  7. root — of a plant
  8. charge — in control
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. deal — to handle
  11. last — finally
  12. band — a ring
  13. root — the cause
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. shower — to wash
  17. hand — in cards
  18. hand — help
  19. shower — rain
  20. charge — electricity
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. charge — a price
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. last — to go on

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