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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bass — the fish
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. field — a subject
  7. fall — to drop
  8. kick — in football
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. bass — low music
  11. row — a line
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. stem — to come from
  15. field — for sport
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. field — farmland
  18. branch — a division
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. row — to paddle
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. kick — with a leg

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