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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: rash · stem · rush · cell · lie · court · bass · pop

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bass — the fish
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. rush — hurry
  6. court — of a king
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. cell — in biology
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — music
  11. lie — to recline
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. court — for sport
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. court — of law
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bass — low music
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rash — a series
  21. pop — to visit
  22. rash — hasty
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bass — the instrument

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