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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. cap — a lid
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cap — a hat
  7. tear — to rip
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. bank — for money
  10. stem — to come from
  11. bank — of a river
  12. pass — a permit
  13. branch — a division
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. tear — from crying
  16. file — a tool
  17. cap — of ice
  18. file — a document
  19. stand — to bear
  20. file — a line of people
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. branch — of a tree

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