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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. kid — to tease
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. swing — music
  7. kid — child
  8. club — a group
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. shower — to wash
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. club — for golf
  15. bat — the animal
  16. stem — to come from
  17. present — a gift
  18. swing — in golf
  19. shower — rain
  20. club — for dancing
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. present — the time now
  24. present — there

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