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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: mouse · scale · shower · club · sharp · band · stem · chest

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. sharp — clever
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for golf
  5. band — a ring
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. shower — rain
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. stem — to come from
  12. chest — a box
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. scale — in music
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. chest — of your body
  19. shower — to wash
  20. band — a music group
  21. scale — size or range
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. club — for dancing
  24. sharp — with an edge

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