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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: ground · band · track · racket · wound · stem · stick · fall

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. band — a music group
  3. stem — to come from
  4. wound — an injury
  5. band — a ring
  6. track — to keep track
  7. fall — the season
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. ground — crushed
  10. track — a path
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. ground — a position
  14. fall — to drop
  15. wound — an injury
  16. ground — the earth
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. fall — to drop
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. track — a song
  24. racket — for tennis

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