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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 · wind · drill · cap · fork · safe

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wind — moving air
  4. drill — a practice
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. stem — to come from
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. cap — of ice
  12. drill — army training
  13. cap — a lid
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. wind — moving air
  16. drill — the tool
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. stem — of a plant

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