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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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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: stem · rash · swing · cell · wake · perch · wind · track

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. track — a song
  3. track — to keep track
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wind — moving air
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. cell — in biology
  12. wind — moving air
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. cell — a phone
  15. stem — to come from
  16. swing — to play on
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. wake — a trail
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. rash — a series
  22. swing — music
  23. track — a path
  24. swing — in golf

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