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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. bank — of a river
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. track — a path
  5. stem — to come from
  6. rush — hurry
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. track — to keep track
  9. shower — to wash
  10. land — ground
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. track — a song
  13. deal — to handle
  14. press — a publisher
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. bank — for money
  18. land — to come down
  19. press — newspapers
  20. shower — rain
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. press — to push
  23. land — a country
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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