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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. wound — an injury
  5. stem — to come from
  6. track — to keep track
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. prune — to trim
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. spring — of water
  11. firm — a company
  12. firm — decided
  13. firm — steady
  14. spring — a coil
  15. chip — for betting
  16. prune — to trim
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. track — a song
  19. track — a path
  20. wound — an injury
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. tube — the underground
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. spring — the season

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