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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: ground · cold · stem · rule · wave · craft

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. cold — not warm
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. cold — an illness
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. ground — crushed
  8. rule — a law
  9. craft — boats
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. ground — a position
  12. ground — the earth
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. rule — government
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. craft — a skill
  18. wave — of the sea

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