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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 · wind · chip · prune · staff · band · mine · can

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. prune — to trim
  3. wind — moving air
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. can — a tin
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a ring
  8. can — to be able to
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. stem — to come from
  13. chip — for betting
  14. can — a tin
  15. wind — moving air
  16. staff — employees
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. staff — employees
  19. prune — to trim
  20. chip — to eat
  21. staff — a stick
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. mine — for digging

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