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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. suit — in cards
  3. chest — of your body
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. press — a publisher
  8. net — for catching
  9. net — after costs
  10. net — in sport
  11. tear — from crying
  12. suit — clothes
  13. squash — the sport
  14. suit — to fit
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. tear — from crying
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. press — newspapers
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. chest — of your body
  21. tear — to rip
  22. press — to push
  23. squash — to crush
  24. chest — a box

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