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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 · spring · rest · cold · press · board · fork · lie

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. board — a committee
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. spring — of water
  9. board — to get on
  10. lie — to recline
  11. spring — the season
  12. press — newspapers
  13. rest — what's left
  14. press — a publisher
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. fork — in a road
  17. rest — a break
  18. press — to push
  19. cold — not warm
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. cold — an illness
  22. spring — a coil
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. rest — what's left

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