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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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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: foot · sharp · snap · stem · bound · chest · leaves · season

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. stem — to come from
  3. foot — a measure
  4. season — in sport
  5. bound — obliged
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. chest — of your body
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. chest — a box
  15. sharp — clever
  16. bound — tied together
  17. chest — of your body
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. snap — to click
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. season — of the year
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. bound — certain

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