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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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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 · hand · pass · last · bay · tube · stem · fork

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. tube — a container
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. hand — help
  6. fork — in a road
  7. pass — a permit
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. last — to go on
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. cold — an illness
  13. last — finally
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. hand — in cards
  18. cold — not warm
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. tube — the underground
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. last — final
  24. hand — part of the body

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