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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. stem — to come from
  3. track — a path
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. track — a song
  6. game — wild animals
  7. band — a ring
  8. game — a match
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. track — to keep track
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. chair — a leader
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. branch — a division
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. bass — low music
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. bass — the fish
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. stem — a stem cell

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