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

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. race — humankind
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. race — the arms race
  7. rule — government
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — to come from
  11. race — a contest
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. rule — a law
  18. ruler — for measuring

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