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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.

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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: stem · bank · hand · fall · charge · band · track · scale

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. bank — for money
  3. track — to keep track
  4. fall — to drop
  5. track — a song
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. bank — for money
  9. charge — in control
  10. band — a ring
  11. fall — the season
  12. band — a music group
  13. hand — help
  14. charge — a price
  15. hand — in cards
  16. stem — to come from
  17. track — a path
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. charge — electricity
  21. bank — of a river
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — in music

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