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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: stem · fan · chest · lie · squash · rock · ground · coach

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. rock — music
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. squash — to crush
  8. ground — crushed
  9. chest — of your body
  10. lie — to recline
  11. rock — a stone
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. chest — of your body
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. stem — to come from
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. chest — a box
  23. ground — a position
  24. ground — the earth

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