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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: nail · ground · fan · rush · stem · rash · season · land

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. land — to come down
  4. rash — hasty
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. season — of the year
  8. ground — crushed
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. stem — to come from
  11. ground — the earth
  12. land — ground
  13. rash — a series
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. season — in sport
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. rush — hurry
  24. land — a country

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