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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 116 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: spring · mine · branch · content · stem · deal · fork · cue

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. fork — in a road
  3. spring — a coil
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. cue — a signal
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. spring — the season
  9. branch — a division
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. content — happy
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. deal — to handle
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. content — the amount
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. stem — to come from
  21. cue — for pool
  22. cue — a hint
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. content — videos and posts

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