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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: straw · press · stem · fan · land · fall · rule · bound

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. bound — tied together
  3. press — newspapers
  4. land — ground
  5. land — a country
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. press — to push
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. fall — the season
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. bound — obliged
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. rule — a law
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fall — to drop
  19. rule — government
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. stem — to come from
  22. bound — certain
  23. press — a publisher
  24. land — to come down

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