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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: wax · stem · pop · charge · hide · chest · spring · cell

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. charge — electricity
  3. pop — to visit
  4. charge — a price
  5. charge — in control
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. spring — the season
  9. pop — music
  10. spring — of water
  11. chest — of your body
  12. cell — a phone
  13. pop — soda
  14. chest — of your body
  15. spring — a coil
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. chest — a box
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. stem — to come from
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. wax — to grow
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  24. wax — in the ear

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