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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: bat · stem · fine · cell · capital · stand

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. fine — all right
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. capital — money
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. capital — a city
  10. cell — in biology
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. fine — high quality
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. stand — to bear
  15. bat — the animal
  16. stem — to come from
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. capital — a big letter

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