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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: coach · stem · season · land · cabinet · craft · ground · track

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. ground — crushed
  3. stem — to come from
  4. land — ground
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. craft — a skill
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. track — a path
  9. land — to come down
  10. season — of the year
  11. ground — a position
  12. land — a country
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. track — a song
  18. ground — the earth
  19. track — to keep track
  20. season — in sport
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. cabinet — ministers

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