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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: kick · shower · game · mouse · bear · stem · squash · row

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. row — a line
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. squash — the sport
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. bear — the animal
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a match
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bear — the animal
  12. row — to paddle
  13. squash — to crush
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. shower — to wash
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. kick — in football
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. shower — rain
  24. stem — to come from

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