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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: bank · date · row · last · wake · stem · hide · season

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. stem — to come from
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. row — to paddle
  6. last — final
  7. last — finally
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bank — for money
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. bank — for money
  15. wake — a trail
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. row — a line
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. season — of the year
  21. last — to go on
  22. bank — of a river
  23. date — the fruit
  24. hide — to keep secret

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