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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 116 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: object · track · stem · cold · court · tube · prune · bass

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. track — to keep track
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. object — an aim
  5. bass — low music
  6. stem — to come from
  7. object — to protest
  8. prune — to trim
  9. court — of a king
  10. track — a path
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. court — for sport
  13. prune — to trim
  14. tube — the underground
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bass — the fish
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tube — a container
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. object — a thing
  22. track — a song
  23. court — of law
  24. cold — not warm

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