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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. bank — for money
  3. field — for sport
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. current — electric
  6. drill — army training
  7. drill — a practice
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. current — happening now
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. current — of water
  14. bank — for money
  15. mine — for digging
  16. field — a subject
  17. bank — of a river
  18. wound — an injury
  19. drill — the tool
  20. wound — an injury
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. field — farmland
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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