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

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. field — farmland
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. chip — to eat
  6. band — a ring
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. stem — to come from
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. can — to be able to
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. band — a music group
  18. can — a tin
  19. chip — for betting
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. can — a tin
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. roll — a cake

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