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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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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: perch · rule · kid · press · stem · arm · dip · pass

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. rule — a law
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. pass — a permit
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. press — newspapers
  7. kid — to tease
  8. rule — government
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. press — a publisher
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. perch — the fish
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. press — to push
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. dip — to sink
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. kid — child

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