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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: fan · march · stem · bound · bulb · track · clip · rest

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — a break
  5. bulb — for light
  6. track — a path
  7. bulb — for light
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. rest — what's left
  10. clip — for paper
  11. march — the month
  12. clip — to cut
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bound — obliged
  15. track — to keep track
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. stem — to come from
  18. march — music
  19. bound — tied together
  20. clip — a video
  21. track — a song
  22. march — the month
  23. bound — certain
  24. stem — a stem cell

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