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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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Word bank
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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: chair · craft · hide · dip · cell · stem · date · coach

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. dip — to sink
  7. chair — a leader
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. craft — a skill
  12. date — the fruit
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. cell — a phone
  15. stem — to come from
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. cell — in biology
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. stem — a stem cell

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