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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: jam · court · plane · coach · hand · cold · stem · bear

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. court — for sport
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — in cards
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. hand — help
  9. court — of a king
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. bear — the animal
  12. cold — an illness
  13. plane — a tool
  14. cold — not warm
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. stem — to come from
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — to put up with

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