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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. season — in sport
  3. season — of the year
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. clip — for paper
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. clip — to cut
  9. chair — a leader
  10. suit — to fit
  11. suit — in cards
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. clip — a video
  17. perch — the fish
  18. stem — to come from
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. suit — clothes

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