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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
468
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: wave · last · stem · bear · row · content · game · hand

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. content — happy
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — help
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. bear — the animal
  14. last — to go on
  15. stem — to come from
  16. row — to paddle
  17. game — wild animals
  18. game — a match
  19. last — finally
  20. row — a line
  21. content — the amount
  22. hand — in cards
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. last — 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