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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. stem — to come from
  8. rest — what's left
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — money
  12. prune — to trim
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. rest — what's left
  20. chair — a leader
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. prune — to trim
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. game — a match

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