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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. chair — a leader
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. land — a country
  6. stem — to come from
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. can — to be able to
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. can — a tin
  16. land — ground
  17. can — a tin
  18. tear — to rip
  19. bass — low music
  20. land — to come down
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bass — the fish
  24. pitcher — a jug

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