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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — a leader
  4. stem — to come from
  5. lie — to recline
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. wind — moving air
  8. ball — a great time
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. ball — a dance
  14. pass — a permit
  15. row — to paddle
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. row — a line
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. stem — a stem cell

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