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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: current · shower · march · stem · bark · wind · chest · fan

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. shower — to wash
  4. bark — to shout
  5. current — electric
  6. march — music
  7. chest — of your body
  8. current — of water
  9. march — the month
  10. chest — a box
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. wind — moving air
  16. march — the month
  17. shower — rain
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. current — happening now
  24. chest — of your body

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