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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ball · jam · stem · mark · key · capital · pit · shower

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. ball — a dance
  3. capital — a city
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. ball — a great time
  6. shower — to wash
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. key — the most important part
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. capital — money
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pit — in a race
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. key — in music
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. mark — a grade
  20. mark — a trace
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. key — for a lock
  24. shower — rain

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