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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: wake · stem · nail · spring · jam · foot · row · kid

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. foot — a measure
  6. spring — a coil
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. spring — of water
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. kid — child
  14. wake — a trail
  15. stem — to come from
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — to tease
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. row — to paddle
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. row — a line

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