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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 120 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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. charge — in control
  3. charge — electricity
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. rock — a stone
  8. spring — of water
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. spring — the season
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. charge — a price
  15. cell — a phone
  16. rock — music
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. chip — to eat
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. spring — a coil
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. cell — in biology
  23. bark — to shout
  24. chip — for betting

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