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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: rush · field · bear · mark · rock · clip · stem · wave

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bear — the animal
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. mark — a trace
  6. clip — a video
  7. stem — to come from
  8. clip — to cut
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. bear — the animal
  13. mark — a grade
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rock — a stone
  19. field — a subject
  20. rush — hurry
  21. field — farmland
  22. field — for sport
  23. clip — for paper
  24. stem — a stem cell

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