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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  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. bear — the animal
  2. game — wild animals
  3. stem — to come from
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. track — a song
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. track — to keep track
  12. game — a match
  13. bass — low music
  14. spell — a short time
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. track — a path
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bass — the fish
  21. spell — letters
  22. spell — magic
  23. bass — the instrument
  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