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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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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: wound · stem · wind · foot · march · fall · toast · net

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. net — for catching
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. fall — the season
  8. net — in sport
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wind — moving air
  11. march — the month
  12. fall — to drop
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. net — after costs
  15. toast — bread
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. stem — to come from
  18. wound — an injury
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. wind — moving air
  21. foot — a measure
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. fall — to drop
  24. march — the month

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