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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: cell · pop · stem · perch · jam · last · band · firm

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. firm — steady
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. firm — decided
  5. last — finally
  6. pop — soda
  7. cell — a phone
  8. band — a ring
  9. last — final
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. perch — the fish
  12. firm — a company
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. cell — in biology
  17. last — to go on
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. pop — to visit
  20. pop — music
  21. stem — to come from
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. jam — in traffic

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