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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: land · race · stem · pop · coach · mine · fan · bore

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. race — humankind
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. race — the arms race
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. pop — music
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to drill
  13. race — a contest
  14. pop — soda
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. land — ground
  18. bore — to tire
  19. stem — to come from
  20. land — a country
  21. pop — to visit
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. land — to come down
  24. mine — for digging

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