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

Word bank: stem · wake · lean · season · march · chair

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. season — of the year
  4. chair — a leader
  5. march — the month
  6. season — in sport
  7. wake — a trail
  8. lean — to bend
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. march — music
  13. stem — to come from
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. lean — thin
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. march — the month
  18. stem — of a plant

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