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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. kid — to tease
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. spell — letters
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. kid — child
  7. spell — a short time
  8. bound — tied together
  9. tube — the underground
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. bound — certain
  15. stem — to come from
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. rush — hurry
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. bound — obliged
  20. spell — magic
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. pound — a weight
  24. chair — a leader

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