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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 116 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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. shower — to wash
  5. stem — to come from
  6. swing — in golf
  7. kid — child
  8. cue — a signal
  9. ball — a dance
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cue — for pool
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. swing — to play on
  14. swing — music
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. rush — hurry
  18. kid — to tease
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. present — there
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. shower — rain
  23. present — the time now
  24. ball — a great time

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