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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: land · key · mine · cap · wave · prune · fork · stem

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. land — ground
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. land — a country
  7. mine — for digging
  8. cap — of ice
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. prune — to trim
  11. key — in music
  12. key — the most important part
  13. land — to come down
  14. prune — to trim
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. cap — a hat
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. key — for a lock
  19. fork — in a road
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. cap — a lid

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