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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: fork · spring · chair · pass · stem · club · mine · mark

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. stem — to come from
  11. club — for dancing
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. club — a group
  14. mark — a grade
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. fork — in a road
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — of water
  19. mine — for digging
  20. chair — a leader
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. spring — a coil
  24. pass — a permit

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