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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: wake · roll · row · content · shower · lie · branch · squash

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. shower — to wash
  6. row — a line
  7. shower — rain
  8. squash — to crush
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. row — to paddle
  11. content — happy
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. branch — a division
  18. roll — a cake
  19. wake — a trail
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. roll — a list
  23. squash — the sport
  24. branch — of a tree

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