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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: fork · cap · rest · stem · key · hand · snap · game

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. key — the most important part
  3. hand — in cards
  4. key — in music
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. key — for a lock
  9. game — wild animals
  10. snap — to click
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. game — a match
  13. hand — help
  14. cap — a hat
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. rest — a break
  18. rest — what's left
  19. cap — of ice
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. rest — what's left
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. cap — a lid

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