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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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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. land — a country
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — an illness
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. land — ground
  13. stand — to bear
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. cap — a hat
  16. spell — magic
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. spell — a short time
  19. spell — letters
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. cap — a lid
  22. stem — to come from
  23. land — to come down
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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