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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. stem — to come from
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. season — of the year
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. sharp — clever
  7. rule — government
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. kid — child
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. bulb — for light
  15. season — in sport
  16. kid — to tease
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. rule — a law
  22. bulb — for light
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. chair — to sit on

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