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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. wound — an injury
  3. lean — to bend
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. spring — of water
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. bear — the animal
  8. chip — for betting
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. wound — an injury
  11. lean — thin
  12. field — for sport
  13. firm — decided
  14. field — farmland
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. spring — the season
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. sharp — clever
  19. bear — the animal
  20. spring — a coil
  21. field — a subject
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. firm — steady
  24. firm — a company

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