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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 116 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: rest · stem · bank · wind · capital · wake

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bank — for money
  6. capital — a city
  7. wind — moving air
  8. capital — money
  9. rest — what's left
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. wake — a trail
  13. bank — of a river
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bank — for money
  16. rest — what's left
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. stem — to come from

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