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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. chair — a leader
  5. land — a country
  6. chest — of your body
  7. object — an aim
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chest — a box
  11. land — to come down
  12. object — a thing
  13. land — ground
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. bowl — a football final
  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