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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: bear · ball · press · pop · game · stem · toast · row

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. game — wild animals
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. toast — bread
  6. pop — music
  7. bear — the animal
  8. ball — a great time
  9. game — a match
  10. pop — soda
  11. pop — to visit
  12. row — a line
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. press — to push
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. stem — to come from
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. ball — a dance
  19. bear — the animal
  20. press — newspapers
  21. row — to paddle
  22. press — a publisher
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. stem — of a plant

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