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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: net · cap · drill · date · stem · cue · bank · kid

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  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. net — in sport
  2. drill — the tool
  3. bank — for money
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. drill — a practice
  6. cap — a lid
  7. date — the fruit
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cue — a signal
  10. net — after costs
  11. bank — for money
  12. kid — to tease
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cap — of ice
  15. net — for catching
  16. cue — for pool
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. kid — child
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. stem — to come from
  22. drill — army training
  23. bank — of a river
  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