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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: stem · can · band · fall · kid · present · race · stand

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. race — humankind
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. fall — the season
  5. present — there
  6. band — a music group
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — the arms race
  9. can — a tin
  10. kid — to tease
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. stand — to bear
  13. present — the time now
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. present — a gift
  17. stem — to come from
  18. fall — to drop
  19. can — to be able to
  20. fall — to drop
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. kid — child
  24. can — a tin

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