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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. cold — not warm
  3. squash — to crush
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. present — the time now
  6. band — a music group
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. present — a gift
  9. fall — to drop
  10. band — a ring
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. present — there
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — the season
  18. stem — to come from
  19. cold — an illness
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. stem — a stem cell

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