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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 120 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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. fall — the season
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. stem — to come from
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — for digging
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. fall — to drop
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — a leader
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. fall — to drop
  19. chip — for betting
  20. cold — an illness
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. chip — to eat
  24. stem — a stem cell

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