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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · rest · rush · snap · field · mark · stem · temple

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. field — for sport
  3. land — to come down
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. rush — hurry
  8. field — farmland
  9. rest — a break
  10. land — ground
  11. field — a subject
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. mark — a grade
  17. land — a country
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. mark — a trace
  20. stem — to come from
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. rest — what's left
  23. snap — to click
  24. rest — what's left

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