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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bass — the fish
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. rash — hasty
  8. drill — army training
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. pop — to visit
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. shower — to wash
  16. pop — soda
  17. bass — low music
  18. rash — a series
  19. drill — a practice
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. pop — music
  22. drill — the tool
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. shower — rain

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