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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: saw · stick · row · bear · stem · pop · last · swing

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. pop — soda
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. stem — to come from
  7. bear — the animal
  8. pop — to visit
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. last — finally
  12. swing — music
  13. saw — the tool
  14. saw — the tool
  15. pop — music
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — to play on
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. row — a line
  20. last — to go on
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. row — to paddle

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