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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: chest · wave · cabinet · cell · bowl · mug · toast · stem

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. chest — of your body
  5. stem — to come from
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. mug — a cup
  8. mug — to rob
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. toast — bread
  16. chest — a box
  17. cell — in biology
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. chest — of your body
  21. mug — a face
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cell — in a prison

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