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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. spring — the season
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. chair — a leader
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. field — for sport
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. field — a subject
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. rush — hurry
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. ball — a dance
  21. spring — of water
  22. field — farmland
  23. ball — a great time
  24. spring — a coil

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