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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 120 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. march — the month
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. mine — for digging
  7. deal — to handle
  8. bank — for money
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. rash — hasty
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. rash — a series
  17. stem — to come from
  18. march — music
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. march — the month
  21. perch — the fish
  22. fork — in a road
  23. bank — of a river
  24. perch — for a bird

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