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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: stem · bark · bulb · stock · field · saw · march · mine

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. bulb — for light
  3. march — the month
  4. stock — shares
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. march — the month
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bark — to shout
  11. stock — goods
  12. march — music
  13. saw — the tool
  14. field — a subject
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. stem — to come from
  17. saw — the tool
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. field — farmland
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. field — for sport
  24. bulb — of a plant

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