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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: track · bound · net · staff · wind · file · stem · trunk

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. bound — obliged
  4. track — to keep track
  5. staff — a stick
  6. wind — moving air
  7. net — after costs
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — employees
  10. track — a path
  11. track — a song
  12. file — a document
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — for catching
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. wind — moving air
  17. file — a tool
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. bound — tied together
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. bound — certain
  24. file — a line of people

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