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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 120 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: cold · bear · kid · stem · pit · board · cap · firm

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bear — the animal
  3. firm — decided
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. pit — in a race
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cap — a lid
  10. board — to get on
  11. cap — of ice
  12. firm — steady
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. kid — to tease
  15. kid — child
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bear — the animal
  18. firm — a company
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. board — a committee
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. stem — to come from
  24. cap — a hat

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