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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. stem — to come from
  3. rock — music
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. band — a music group
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. mate — a friend
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. degree — temperature
  13. bank — for money
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. bank — for money
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. degree — from a university
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. mate — a partner
  20. rock — a stone
  21. band — a ring
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. degree — an amount
  24. mate — to breed

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