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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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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: game · stem · chair · face · stick · lash · mug · land

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. chair — a leader
  3. face — part of the head
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. game — wild animals
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. land — a country
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. game — a match
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. face — to point toward
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. land — to come down
  15. mug — a cup
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. land — ground
  18. face — to confront
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. mug — to rob
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. stem — to come from
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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