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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: ground · saw · can · branch · face · track · stem · shower

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stem — to come from
  3. can — a tin
  4. can — to be able to
  5. ground — crushed
  6. track — a song
  7. can — a tin
  8. branch — a division
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. track — a path
  11. ground — the earth
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. shower — to wash
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — part of the head
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. shower — rain
  18. saw — the tool
  19. track — to keep track
  20. ground — a position
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. face — to confront
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. branch — of a tree

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