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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: leaves · stem · chair · staff · bat · chest · rule · pop

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. pop — soda
  3. rule — government
  4. pop — to visit
  5. chair — a leader
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. staff — employees
  10. chest — a box
  11. staff — employees
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. rule — a law
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. chest — of your body
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. staff — a stick
  19. bat — the animal
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. chest — of your body
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. stem — to come from

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