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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. mine — for digging
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. file — a document
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. file — a line of people
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. file — a tool
  13. shower — rain
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. toast — bread
  24. vault — a safe

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