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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: tear · bowl · snap · leaves · mine · fan · drill · stem

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. drill — the tool
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. drill — a practice
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. snap — to click
  14. stem — to come from
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. tear — from crying
  17. drill — army training
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. mine — for digging
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. tear — from crying
  24. leaves — to go away

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