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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — to come from
  4. chair — a leader
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. wax — to grow
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. file — a document
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. wake — a trail
  13. can — a tin
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. file — a line of people
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. can — a tin
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. can — to be able to
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. file — a tool

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