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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. chest — a box
  3. chip — to eat
  4. root — the cause
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. lean — thin
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. root — of a word
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — for light
  14. stem — to come from
  15. lean — to bend
  16. tear — from crying
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. tear — to rip
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. root — of a plant
  22. chip — for betting
  23. mine — for digging
  24. bulb — of a plant

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