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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: suit · land · tear · wind · stem · bank · band · lie

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bank — for money
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. band — a music group
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bank — for money
  9. suit — to fit
  10. band — a ring
  11. suit — clothes
  12. land — a country
  13. tear — to rip
  14. lie — to recline
  15. wind — moving air
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. suit — in cards
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. stem — to come from
  24. tear — from crying

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