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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: row · object · stem · jam · key · coach · rule · cold

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. object — an aim
  3. key — in music
  4. stem — to come from
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. key — for a lock
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. cold — not warm
  9. object — to protest
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. row — a line
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. key — the most important part
  16. cold — an illness
  17. object — a thing
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. rule — a law
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. row — to paddle
  24. rule — government

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