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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 can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. pit — a hole
  4. spring — the season
  5. field — for sport
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cue — a signal
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. fall — to drop
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. field — farmland
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. cue — a hint
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. field — a subject
  19. spring — of water
  20. chair — a leader
  21. spring — a coil
  22. fall — the season
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. pit — in a race

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