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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: stem · rush · rest · wax · current · field · march · spell

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. march — the month
  3. current — of water
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rest — a break
  6. current — happening now
  7. march — the month
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — to come from
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. field — a subject
  14. march — music
  15. spell — magic
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. field — for sport
  18. rest — what's left
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. spell — a short time
  21. wax — to grow
  22. current — electric
  23. rush — hurry
  24. spell — letters

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