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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. bass — low music
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. cue — for pool
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. kid — child
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. kid — to tease
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. branch — a division
  15. cue — a signal
  16. bass — the fish
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. wake — a trail
  19. fork — in a road
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. cue — a hint
  23. stem — to come from
  24. wake — before a funeral

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