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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 124 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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. pop — music
  3. stem — to come from
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. mug — a face
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. mug — to rob
  9. charge — electricity
  10. shower — rain
  11. bank — for money
  12. cell — in biology
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bank — for money
  15. charge — in control
  16. cell — a phone
  17. pop — to visit
  18. shower — to wash
  19. pop — soda
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. bank — of a river
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. mug — a cup

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