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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: stem · deal · cold · club · pit · row · racket · foot

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. club — for golf
  5. club — for dancing
  6. row — to paddle
  7. row — a line
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. stem — to come from
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. foot — a measure
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. club — a group
  18. cold — an illness
  19. pit — in a race
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. cold — not warm
  23. deal — to handle
  24. stem — a stem cell

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