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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. race — a contest
  7. stock — shares
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. cap — a hat
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. race — humankind
  12. cap — a lid
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. pit — a hole
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. stock — goods
  19. pit — in a race
  20. mine — for digging
  21. race — the arms race
  22. cap — of ice
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. fork — in a road

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