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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: clip · stand · stem · march · bank · fall · track · present

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. fall — the season
  3. bank — for money
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. track — to keep track
  6. fall — to drop
  7. clip — for paper
  8. present — a gift
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. present — the time now
  12. track — a path
  13. bank — of a river
  14. fall — to drop
  15. present — there
  16. clip — a video
  17. march — the month
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. track — a song
  20. clip — to cut
  21. stand — to bear
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. bank — for money

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