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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. lie — to recline
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. craft — a skill
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. wax — to grow
  9. chair — a leader
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. face — part of the head
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. stem — to come from
  14. band — a ring
  15. craft — boats
  16. band — a music group
  17. face — to confront
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. face — to point toward
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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