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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wind · cue · bowl · stem · chair · chest

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. chest — of your body
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. wind — moving air
  8. chest — a box
  9. cue — a hint
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. cue — for pool
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. chair — a leader
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. chest — of your body

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