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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: band · rash · sharp · file · date · stem · pass · branch

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. band — a music group
  3. branch — a division
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. sharp — clever
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. rash — a series
  9. date — the fruit
  10. band — a ring
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. file — a tool
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. file — a line of people
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. pass — a permit
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. file — a document
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. rash — hasty

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