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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. board — to get on
  3. spring — of water
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. cap — of ice
  9. rule — a law
  10. hand — help
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. cap — a hat
  13. spring — a coil
  14. pop — soda
  15. stem — to come from
  16. pop — to visit
  17. wake — a trail
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. spring — the season
  20. rule — government
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. hand — in cards
  23. board — a committee
  24. cap — a lid

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