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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chair · jam · last · tear · stem · squash · season · fan

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. last — finally
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. season — of the year
  5. chair — a leader
  6. last — to go on
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. stem — to come from
  11. tear — to rip
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. squash — to crush
  14. tear — from crying
  15. squash — the sport
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. season — in sport
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. last — final
  24. season — to add flavour

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