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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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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 · chair · stock · face · fall · branch · wake · bass

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bass — low music
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. face — to point toward
  6. branch — a division
  7. face — to confront
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stock — goods
  10. fall — the season
  11. bass — the fish
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wake — a trail
  14. fall — to drop
  15. stem — to come from
  16. stock — shares
  17. fall — to drop
  18. face — part of the head
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. chair — a professorship

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