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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: ball · row · kid · root · bowl · stem · pop · rest

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ball — a dance
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. ball — a great time
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. pop — to visit
  8. rest — what's left
  9. stem — to come from
  10. row — a line
  11. pop — soda
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. row — to paddle
  14. kid — to tease
  15. pop — music
  16. root — the cause
  17. rest — what's left
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. kid — child
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — of a plant
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. rest — a break
  24. bowl — a football final

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