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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. cue — a signal
  4. band — a music group
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. root — of a word
  7. wound — an injury
  8. band — a ring
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bank — for money
  11. root — the cause
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. bank — of a river
  16. cue — a hint
  17. wound — an injury
  18. scale — in music
  19. cue — for pool
  20. bank — for money
  21. scale — size or range
  22. root — of a plant
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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