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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: sharp · racket · stand · cell · shower · wave · band · plane

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. stand — to bear
  5. band — a ring
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. band — a music group
  9. cell — a phone
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. shower — to wash
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. shower — rain
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. plane — a tool
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. sharp — clever
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. cell — in biology

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