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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. land — to come down
  4. wind — moving air
  5. lean — to bend
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. fall — the season
  10. can — a tin
  11. land — a country
  12. land — ground
  13. fall — to drop
  14. stem — to come from
  15. can — a tin
  16. wind — moving air
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. roll — a cake
  19. lean — thin
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. can — to be able to
  23. fall — to drop
  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