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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: rash · fan · stem · stock · bay · trunk · date · hand

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. stem — to come from
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. rash — hasty
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. hand — help
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. hand — in cards
  11. stock — goods
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. rash — a series
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. stock — shares
  22. date — the fruit
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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