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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 father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. court — of law
  3. cap — of ice
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. cap — a lid
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. chair — a leader
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. spell — a short time
  11. stand — to bear
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. court — of a king
  14. spell — letters
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. spell — magic
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. stem — to come from
  19. court — for sport
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. cap — a hat
  24. stem — of a plant

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