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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 · stand · wound · bass · stem · object · squash · hand

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. hand — help
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. stem — to come from
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. object — an aim
  9. object — to protest
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. chair — a leader
  13. squash — to crush
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. hand — in cards
  16. bass — low music
  17. bass — the fish
  18. object — a thing
  19. wound — an injury
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. stand — to bear
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. squash — the sport

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