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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 train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. stem — to come from
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. drill — army training
  8. spring — the season
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. squash — the sport
  11. drill — a practice
  12. wax — to grow
  13. spring — of water
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. chair — a leader
  17. mine — for digging
  18. spring — a coil
  19. drill — the tool
  20. squash — to crush
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. wax — in the ear

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