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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. snap — to click
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. press — to push
  5. face — to point toward
  6. craft — boats
  7. net — after costs
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. chip — for betting
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. face — to confront
  13. net — in sport
  14. craft — a skill
  15. face — part of the head
  16. branch — a division
  17. net — for catching
  18. press — a publisher
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. chip — to eat
  23. press — newspapers
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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