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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. rash — hasty
  5. stem — to come from
  6. rash — a series
  7. date — the fruit
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. rest — a break
  10. shower — to wash
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. rest — what's left
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. shower — rain
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. tube — the underground
  17. tube — a container
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. cell — in biology
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. cell — a phone

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