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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: craft · wax · net · last · spell · field · fall · stem

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. fall — to drop
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. net — for catching
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. fall — to drop
  8. last — finally
  9. craft — a skill
  10. field — a subject
  11. spell — letters
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. field — farmland
  14. fall — the season
  15. field — for sport
  16. last — to go on
  17. spell — a short time
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. spell — magic
  21. stem — to come from
  22. last — final
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — in sport

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