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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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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: craft · fork · chest · lean · wake · nail · stem · shower

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. wake — a trail
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. chest — of your body
  5. stem — to come from
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — a box
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. craft — a skill
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. craft — boats
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. shower — to wash
  19. fork — in a road
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. lean — thin
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. shower — rain
  24. stem — of a plant

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