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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: board · stem · current · saw · spring · craft · patient · cold

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. saw — the tool
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — the season
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. craft — a skill
  7. craft — boats
  8. board — a committee
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. saw — the tool
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. board — to get on
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. current — of water
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. cold — an illness
  20. spring — of water
  21. current — electric
  22. current — happening now
  23. patient — a sick person
  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