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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. fall — the season
  3. fall — to drop
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. stem — to come from
  6. mark — a grade
  7. file — a line of people
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. file — a tool
  14. chair — a leader
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. mark — a trace
  18. bulb — for light
  19. sharp — clever
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. file — a document
  22. fall — to drop
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. mine — for digging

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