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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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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: board · cue · stem · wind · row · spring · ruler · lie

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. stem — to come from
  4. wind — moving air
  5. board — a committee
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lie — to recline
  8. spring — of water
  9. cue — a signal
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. board — to get on
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. spring — the season
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. row — a line
  19. cue — for pool
  20. row — to paddle
  21. cue — a hint
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. stem — a stem cell

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