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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  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. cold — an illness
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. chair — a leader
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. ball — a dance
  8. squash — the sport
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. squash — to crush
  12. land — a country
  13. stem — to come from
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. ball — a great time
  17. land — ground
  18. land — to come down
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. stem — a stem cell
  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