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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. tear — from crying
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a leader
  6. mark — a grade
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. march — the month
  9. mark — a trace
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. tear — from crying
  13. march — music
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. stem — to come from
  17. tear — to rip
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. stand — to bear
  22. march — the month
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. leaves — of a tree

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