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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. lie — to recline
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — wild animals
  6. foot — a measure
  7. chip — to eat
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — after costs
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. net — for catching
  15. game — a match
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. pound — a weight
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. chip — for betting
  24. lie — an untruth

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