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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 116 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 captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. chip — to eat
  4. clip — to cut
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. clip — for paper
  10. board — a committee
  11. clip — a video
  12. wind — moving air
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stem — to come from
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. chip — for betting
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. wind — moving air
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. leaves — lets stay

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