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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 116 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: land · drill · mouse · game · pitcher · plane · band · stem

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. band — a ring
  4. land — a country
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. drill — the tool
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. land — ground
  9. game — wild animals
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. drill — a practice
  12. plane — a tool
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. game — a match
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. drill — army training
  18. land — to come down
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. band — a music group
  24. pitcher — a jug

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