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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. dip — to sink
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mate — to breed
  7. stem — to come from
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. spring — the season
  10. mate — a friend
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. spring — a coil
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. season — in sport
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. spring — of water
  21. chair — a leader
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. season — of the year

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