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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. craft — boats
  7. stem — to come from
  8. craft — a skill
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. chip — to eat
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. fall — to drop
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chip — for betting
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. perch — the fish
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. mark — a trace
  24. mark — a grade

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