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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. kid — child
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. kid — to tease
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. shower — rain
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. shower — to wash
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. stem — to come from
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. chip — for betting
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. coach — a trainer

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