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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: stem · bore · file · mark · cap · board · cold · game

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. mark — a grade
  4. file — a tool
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a match
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. cap — of ice
  10. bore — to tire
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. file — a document
  13. stem — to come from
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. file — a line of people
  16. board — a committee
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. cap — a hat
  19. board — to get on
  20. mark — a trace
  21. cap — a lid
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. cold — an illness

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