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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: nail · stem · last · sharp · mark · rock · cold · roll

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. mark — a grade
  3. last — to go on
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. roll — a cake
  7. last — finally
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. rock — a stone
  12. stem — to come from
  13. cold — not warm
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. cold — an illness
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. rock — music
  20. roll — a list
  21. last — final
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. mark — a trace

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