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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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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: net · stem · kid · fine · cell · staff · last · fork

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. cell — a phone
  3. fine — all right
  4. net — in sport
  5. staff — employees
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. fork — in a road
  9. staff — employees
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. last — finally
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. last — to go on
  14. cell — in biology
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. staff — a stick
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. last — final
  20. kid — child
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — after costs
  23. kid — to tease
  24. fine — high quality

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