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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: stem · trunk · club · deal · cell · cold · craft · nail

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. craft — a skill
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. club — for golf
  11. cell — a phone
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cold — an illness
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. club — for dancing
  19. deal — to handle
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. stem — to come from
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. club — a group

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