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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. file — a document
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. chair — a leader
  7. season — in sport
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. bulb — for light
  12. file — a line of people
  13. bulb — for light
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. cold — not warm
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. cold — an illness
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. file — a tool
  21. season — of the year
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. stem — to come from

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