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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  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. row — a quarrel
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. wake — a trail
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. row — to paddle
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. stem — to come from
  10. pass — a permit
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. bat — the animal
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. pitch — completely
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. shower — to wash
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. row — a line
  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