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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. file — a tool
  3. net — for catching
  4. file — a line of people
  5. chip — to eat
  6. ground — crushed
  7. ground — a position
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. wound — an injury
  11. net — after costs
  12. stem — to come from
  13. spell — a short time
  14. spell — magic
  15. season — of the year
  16. file — a document
  17. spell — letters
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. net — in sport
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. wound — an injury
  22. ground — the earth
  23. season — in sport
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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