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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 potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. track — a path
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. land — a country
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. bark — to shout
  7. track — to keep track
  8. foot — a measure
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. chip — for betting
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — ground
  19. track — a song
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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