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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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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 · stick · patient · stem · racket · straw · content · cell

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. spring — the season
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. content — happy
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. content — the amount
  9. spring — of water
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. stem — to come from
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. cell — in biology
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. cell — a phone
  23. spring — a coil
  24. racket — for tennis

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