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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 120 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: leaves · bat · tube · fan · stem · racket · dip · row

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. row — a line
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. dip — to sink
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. stem — to come from
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. tube — the underground
  17. tube — a container
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. row — to paddle
  24. bat — the animal

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