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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. swing — in golf
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. shower — to wash
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. swing — music
  10. shower — rain
  11. club — for golf
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. swing — to play on
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stock — goods
  16. squash — to crush
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. club — a group
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. club — for dancing
  21. squash — the sport
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. stock — shares
  24. trunk — of a car

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