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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. track — a path
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. squash — to crush
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. track — a song
  9. stem — to come from
  10. season — in sport
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. squash — the sport
  14. track — to keep track
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. chair — a leader
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. season — of the year
  19. rash — a series
  20. kick — in football
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. season — to add flavour

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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