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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: band · stem · file · leaves · firm · game · prune · present

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. present — a gift
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. firm — steady
  9. firm — decided
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a line of people
  14. prune — to trim
  15. band — a music group
  16. game — wild animals
  17. firm — a company
  18. prune — to trim
  19. present — the time now
  20. present — there
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. band — a ring
  23. file — a document
  24. band — a rubber band

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