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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
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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: net · shower · bear · last · stem · hide · bat · wave

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — after costs
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bat — the animal
  6. last — final
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. last — finally
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — to come from
  13. last — to go on
  14. shower — rain
  15. shower — to wash
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bear — the animal
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. net — for catching
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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