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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. current — of water
  4. band — a ring
  5. shower — rain
  6. shower — to wash
  7. stem — to come from
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. tear — to rip
  10. tear — from crying
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bass — low music
  14. kick — in football
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. current — electric
  20. branch — a division
  21. tear — from crying
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. current — happening now

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