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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: cold · fan · bank · saw · land · stem · leaves · lean

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — not warm
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. bank — for money
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. stem — to come from
  9. land — a country
  10. saw — the tool
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. lean — to bend
  15. bank — for money
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. land — ground
  18. land — to come down
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bank — of a river
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. stem — a stem cell

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