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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: shower · branch · game · straw · stick · cell · bowl · wind

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. shower — rain
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. shower — to wash
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. game — a match
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cell — in biology
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. wind — moving air
  18. branch — a division
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. cell — a phone
  24. game — wild animals

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