ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

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: bat · stem · patient · cell · chair · rest

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. rest — a break
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. chair — a leader
  6. stem — to come from
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. cell — a phone
  9. cell — in biology
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. bat — the animal
  15. rest — what's left
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. rest — what's left
  18. patient — a sick person

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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