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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: ball · wind · leaves · fall · stem · bowl · patient · mark

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. ball — a great time
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. stem — to come from
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. fall — the season
  12. wind — moving air
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. mark — a grade
  17. ball — a dance
  18. fall — to drop
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. mark — a trace
  22. wind — moving air
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. mark — to pay attention

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