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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. The water is too ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. cold — not warm
  3. staff — employees
  4. cue — a hint
  5. staff — a stick
  6. cold — an illness
  7. toast — bread
  8. bass — the fish
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — low music
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. cue — a signal
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. press — newspapers
  18. press — a publisher
  19. stem — to come from
  20. press — to push
  21. staff — employees
  22. chair — a leader
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. chair — to sit on

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