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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. suit — to fit
  3. bear — the animal
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rash — a series
  6. chip — for betting
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. squash — to crush
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. rush — hurry
  11. file — a line of people
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. rash — hasty
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. stem — to come from
  17. suit — clothes
  18. suit — in cards
  19. file — a tool
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. bear — the animal
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. squash — the sport
  24. file — a document

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