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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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Word bank
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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: stem · wake · band · coach · file · face · spell · fall

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. spell — a short time
  4. band — a ring
  5. spell — letters
  6. face — to confront
  7. spell — magic
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wake — a trail
  12. file — a line of people
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — the season
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. face — to point toward
  19. face — part of the head
  20. band — a music group
  21. fall — to drop
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. file — a document
  24. 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