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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. wound — an injury
  3. charge — a price
  4. degree — an amount
  5. spell — letters
  6. degree — from a university
  7. chip — for betting
  8. degree — temperature
  9. stem — to come from
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. chip — to eat
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. charge — in control
  16. rash — hasty
  17. spell — magic
  18. wound — an injury
  19. charge — electricity
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. spell — a short time
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — on the skin

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