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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: fork · mine · stem · bear · wake · file · cue · kick

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a document
  8. stem — to come from
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. file — a line of people
  12. mine — for digging
  13. fork — in a road
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. cue — a hint
  19. kick — in football
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. wake — a trail
  22. cue — a signal
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. mine — belonging to me

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