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

Word bank: stem · swing · row · fork · file · march

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. stem — to come from
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. swing — in golf
  8. swing — to play on
  9. file — a tool
  10. swing — music
  11. march — music
  12. fork — in a road
  13. row — to paddle
  14. row — a line
  15. march — the month
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. file — a document
  18. march — the month

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