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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: cabinet · stem · chair · lie · hide · snap · prune · bat

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. chair — a leader
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. stem — to come from
  13. snap — to click
  14. prune — to trim
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. lie — to recline
  18. bat — the animal
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. prune — to trim
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. hide — to keep secret

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