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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. wound — an injury
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. chair — a leader
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. wound — an injury
  18. stem — to come from

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