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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: ball · race · net · straw · stem · lie · chair · pit

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. race — the arms race
  5. chair — a leader
  6. race — humankind
  7. ball — a great time
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. net — for catching
  10. net — after costs
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. pit — in a race
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. net — in sport
  17. pit — a hole
  18. lie — to recline
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. stem — to come from
  21. race — a contest
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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