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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: chair · bowl · scale · bay · stem · mark · kid · current

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. scale — size or range
  3. current — electric
  4. scale — in music
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. current — happening now
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. chair — a leader
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. current — of water
  13. mark — a trace
  14. kid — child
  15. kid — to tease
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. mark — a grade
  23. stem — of a plant
  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