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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: stick · wake · spring · net · scale · mate · stem · hand

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. scale — size or range
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. spring — a coil
  7. mate — a friend
  8. net — after costs
  9. scale — in music
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — the season
  12. wake — a trail
  13. net — in sport
  14. stem — to come from
  15. mate — a partner
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. hand — help
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. net — for catching
  24. hand — in cards

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