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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 116 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: bat · rock · stem · snap · hand · wave · object · branch

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. rock — a stone
  4. hand — in cards
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. rock — music
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. snap — to click
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. hand — help
  12. stem — to come from
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. object — a thing
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. object — to protest
  22. branch — a division
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. stem — a stem cell

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