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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 116 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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  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. tube — the underground
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. chair — a leader
  5. can — a tin
  6. can — a tin
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. stem — to come from
  9. tube — a container
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. charge — a price
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. can — to be able to
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. charge — electricity
  22. cold — an illness
  23. charge — in control
  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