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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. shower — rain
  3. object — a thing
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. squash — to crush
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. staff — a stick
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. squash — the sport
  10. stem — to come from
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — to tease
  14. staff — employees
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. object — an aim
  17. staff — employees
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. object — to protest
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. shower — to wash
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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