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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: staff · stem · rush · game · saw · mate · bark · shower

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. bark — to shout
  3. shower — to wash
  4. saw — the tool
  5. staff — a stick
  6. mate — a partner
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. shower — rain
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. saw — the tool
  13. game — wild animals
  14. rush — hurry
  15. mate — a friend
  16. game — a match
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. staff — employees
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. staff — employees
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. stem — to come from
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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