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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. stem — to come from
  3. fall — the season
  4. fall — to drop
  5. board — to get on
  6. fall — to drop
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. squash — to crush
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. content — the amount
  17. content — happy
  18. squash — the sport
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. board — a committee

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