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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. chair — a leader
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. bat — the animal
  5. stem — to come from
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. mug — a cup
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — to shout
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. mug — a face
  14. file — a line of people
  15. file — a document
  16. mug — to rob
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. patient — a sick person

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