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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 120 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: ruler · fan · fall · spring · stem · drill · craft · bat

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. stem — to come from
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bat — the animal
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. craft — boats
  10. craft — a skill
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. spring — of water
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. drill — a practice
  17. drill — army training
  18. spring — a coil
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. fall — the season
  23. spring — the season
  24. ruler — for measuring

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