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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 120 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: charge · stem · perch · race · fork · spring · bass · cell

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. spring — of water
  5. cell — a phone
  6. perch — the fish
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bass — the fish
  9. bass — low music
  10. race — humankind
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — a coil
  13. charge — in control
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. charge — a price
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. fork — in a road
  19. race — the arms race
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. charge — electricity
  24. race — a contest

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