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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: cold · net · spell · drill · jam · track · fan · stem

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cold — not warm
  4. track — to keep track
  5. net — in sport
  6. cold — an illness
  7. track — a song
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. net — for catching
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. spell — magic
  14. track — a path
  15. drill — a practice
  16. stem — to come from
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. drill — army training
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. drill — the tool
  21. net — after costs
  22. spell — letters
  23. spell — a short time
  24. stem — of a plant

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