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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: wake · stem · squash · craft · branch · cold · pit · row

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. cold — an illness
  3. craft — boats
  4. pit — a hole
  5. wake — a trail
  6. row — to paddle
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. craft — a skill
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. branch — a division
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. squash — the sport
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. pit — in a race
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. stem — to come from
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. cold — not warm
  23. row — a line
  24. squash — to crush

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