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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 116 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: stem · leaves · fan · march · rash · bark · season · row

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. march — the month
  5. row — a line
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rash — a series
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. stem — to come from
  13. season — of the year
  14. march — music
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. season — in sport
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. row — to paddle
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. march — the month
  24. season — to add flavour

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