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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. object — to protest
  4. cell — a phone
  5. lie — to recline
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. kick — in football
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. cell — in biology
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — to push
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. object — an aim
  16. pitch — completely
  17. object — a thing
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. press — newspapers
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. pitch — a sports field

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