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

Word bank: pound · shower · wake · board · stem · wind · race · wave

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. wake — a trail
  5. pound — a weight
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. stem — to come from
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. race — humankind
  14. race — a contest
  15. board — to get on
  16. shower — rain
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. wind — moving air
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. shower — to wash
  21. board — a committee
  22. race — the arms race
  23. wind — moving air
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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