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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 116 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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. file — a tool
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. pit — a hole
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. file — a document
  9. chair — a leader
  10. season — of the year
  11. file — a line of people
  12. pit — in a race
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. lean — to bend
  16. wind — moving air
  17. fork — in a road
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. season — in sport
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wind — moving air
  22. lean — thin
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. fork — to eat with

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