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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. squash — to crush
  4. cold — an illness
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. chip — for betting
  7. rash — hasty
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. track — a song
  10. rash — a series
  11. squash — the sport
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. cold — not warm
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. stem — to come from
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. track — a path
  18. chip — to eat
  19. pit — in a race
  20. track — to keep track
  21. pit — a hole
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. mark — a grade

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