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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. chip — for betting
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. stand — to bear
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — in cards
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — from a university
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. chair — a leader
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. degree — an amount
  16. band — a music group
  17. chip — to eat
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. mate — a friend
  21. mate — to breed
  22. mate — a partner
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. band — a ring

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