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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: chair · stem · hide · mate · tear · cabinet · row · lie

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. mate — to breed
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. stem — to come from
  6. mate — a friend
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. row — a line
  9. tear — from crying
  10. lie — to recline
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mate — a partner
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. row — to paddle
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. tear — to rip
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. chair — a leader

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