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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: rush · content · spell · rock · bat · bowl · tear · stem

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. content — happy
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. spell — letters
  9. rock — music
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. content — the amount
  15. spell — magic
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. tear — to rip
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. bat — the animal
  23. rock — a stone
  24. rush — hurry

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