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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. band — a music group
  3. pop — to visit
  4. pop — music
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. saw — the tool
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — a stick
  13. staff — employees
  14. spell — letters
  15. band — a ring
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. spell — magic
  18. spell — a short time
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. pop — soda
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. snap — to click

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