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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: arm · bark · shower · roll · wound · stem · fork · bowl

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. shower — rain
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. roll — a list
  11. shower — to wash
  12. roll — a cake
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. stem — to come from
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fork — in a road

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