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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. stem — to come from
  3. march — the month
  4. wake — a trail
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. clip — a video
  7. march — music
  8. lean — thin
  9. chair — a leader
  10. season — of the year
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. lean — to bend
  14. march — the month
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. clip — for paper
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. clip — to cut
  21. season — in sport
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. wake — before a funeral

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