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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: pop · straw · spring · land · mate · bank · stem · tear

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. mate — a friend
  4. mate — a partner
  5. bank — for money
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. land — a country
  8. land — ground
  9. tear — from crying
  10. spring — of water
  11. land — to come down
  12. pop — soda
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. stem — to come from
  17. pop — music
  18. pop — to visit
  19. spring — the season
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bank — for money
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bank — of a river

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