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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. stem — to come from
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — a stick
  6. bass — low music
  7. bass — the fish
  8. can — a tin
  9. band — a ring
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — to fit
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. chest — of your body
  16. band — a music group
  17. suit — clothes
  18. pit — in a race
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. chest — of your body
  21. can — a tin
  22. chest — a box
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. staff — employees

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