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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.

Make a worksheet

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: stem · chair · chest · mate · march · pitcher · mine · fine

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fine — high quality
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mate — to breed
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. chair — a leader
  9. stem — to come from
  10. mate — a friend
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. mate — a partner
  15. fine — all right
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mine — for digging
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. march — the month
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. chair — a professorship

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