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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 120 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 taking a ________________ right now.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. game — a match
  3. plane — a tool
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. shower — rain
  7. mark — a grade
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — tied together
  10. capital — a city
  11. game — wild animals
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. bound — certain
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. mark — a trace
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. capital — money
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. capital — a big letter

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