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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: game · stem · spell · bound · cell · arm · staff · drill

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. staff — employees
  4. game — wild animals
  5. staff — a stick
  6. stem — to come from
  7. spell — letters
  8. staff — employees
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. cell — a phone
  11. game — a match
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bound — certain
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. drill — army training
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bound — tied together
  18. spell — magic
  19. cell — in biology
  20. drill — a practice
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. drill — the tool
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. spell — a short time

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