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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 · last · fork · stem · racket · tear · cue · hide

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. stem — to come from
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. cell — a phone
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. last — finally
  12. tear — to rip
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. fork — in a road
  15. cell — in biology
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cue — a hint
  21. tear — from crying
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. cue — a signal
  24. fork — to eat with

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