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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: field · stem · rule · bat · present · bank

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. present — a gift
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. bank — for money
  7. field — for sport
  8. rule — government
  9. field — a subject
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. stem — to come from
  12. field — farmland
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bank — of a river
  15. present — the time now
  16. rule — a law
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. present — there

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