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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rock · wind · stem · bowl · march · season · spell · pop

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. spell — a short time
  4. rock — a stone
  5. march — the month
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. season — of the year
  8. march — the month
  9. spell — letters
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. rock — music
  12. march — music
  13. pop — to visit
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. pop — music
  16. stem — to come from
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. pop — soda
  23. season — in sport
  24. spell — magic

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