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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. stem — to come from
  3. squash — to crush
  4. shower — rain
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. sharp — clever
  8. squash — the sport
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. wind — moving air
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. shower — to wash
  15. band — a ring
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. wind — moving air
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. fall — the season
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. fall — to drop
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. wind — to turn a key

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