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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. march — music
  5. ground — a position
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. ground — the earth
  8. rash — a series
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. tube — a container
  12. scale — size or range
  13. scale — in music
  14. march — the month
  15. stem — to come from
  16. tube — the underground
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. rush — hurry
  19. rash — hasty
  20. chair — a leader
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. ground — crushed
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. march — the month

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