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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. court — of law
  8. bank — for money
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bore — to drill
  17. pass — a permit
  18. court — of a king
  19. row — a line
  20. shower — to wash
  21. mine — for digging
  22. shower — rain
  23. bank — for money
  24. court — for sport

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