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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. ball — a great time
  5. land — to come down
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. land — a country
  9. track — a song
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. spring — the season
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. spring — of water
  14. track — a path
  15. pass — a permit
  16. spring — a coil
  17. land — ground
  18. board — a committee
  19. track — to keep track
  20. board — to get on
  21. ball — a dance
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. branch — a division

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