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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: cell · stem · fork · kid · fall · mate · lean · nail

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. mate — a friend
  4. lean — to bend
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. cell — in biology
  7. fall — to drop
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. fork — in a road
  10. kid — to tease
  11. mate — a partner
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. stem — to come from
  15. kid — child
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. lean — thin
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. mate — to breed
  20. fall — to drop
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. cell — a phone
  24. nail — on a finger

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