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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. tear — from crying
  5. chip — to eat
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. stem — to come from
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. field — farmland
  11. chest — a box
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. tear — to rip
  14. spell — magic
  15. chip — for betting
  16. tear — from crying
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. chest — of your body
  19. field — a subject
  20. spell — letters
  21. field — for sport
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. chest — of your body
  24. stem — 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