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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 116 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: stem · spring · rock · calf · hand · prune · drill · bay

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. prune — to trim
  4. hand — in cards
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. stem — to come from
  9. drill — a practice
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. drill — the tool
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. prune — to trim
  15. spring — a coil
  16. rock — music
  17. spring — of water
  18. drill — army training
  19. rock — a stone
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. spring — the season
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. calf — of the leg

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