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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: mug · roll · last · bowl · stem · season · dip · wind

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. mug — a cup
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. last — final
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. mug — to rob
  8. season — in sport
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. mug — a face
  13. last — to go on
  14. stem — to come from
  15. roll — a list
  16. dip — to sink
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. last — finally
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — of the year
  22. roll — a cake
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. roll — on a roll

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