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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 120 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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  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 — a stem cell
  2. stem — to come from
  3. press — a publisher
  4. press — newspapers
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. wound — an injury
  7. file — a document
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — a stick
  10. season — in sport
  11. chest — of your body
  12. file — a line of people
  13. chest — of your body
  14. file — a tool
  15. press — to push
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bass — the fish
  18. staff — employees
  19. bass — low music
  20. wound — an injury
  21. season — of the year
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. stem — of a plant
  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