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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 116 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: kid · capital · stick · press · stem · cue · chair · stock

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. press — to push
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. press — a publisher
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. press — newspapers
  7. cue — a hint
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stem — to come from
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — child
  14. stock — shares
  15. cue — for pool
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. stock — goods
  18. chair — a leader
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. capital — money
  21. kid — to tease
  22. capital — a city
  23. cue — a signal
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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