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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: wound · file · rule · bowl · bank · stem

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. wound — an injury
  5. bank — of a river
  6. rule — government
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. rule — a law
  10. bank — for money
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. file — a line of people
  15. file — a document
  16. wound — an injury
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. file — a tool

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