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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: bore · chair · field · press · scale · charge · stem · tear

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. press — to push
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. press — newspapers
  6. charge — a price
  7. stem — to come from
  8. charge — electricity
  9. scale — size or range
  10. bore — to tire
  11. bore — to drill
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. tear — from crying
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. charge — in control
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. field — farmland
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — a subject
  21. press — a publisher
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. scale — in music

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