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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. roll — a cake
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. court — of law
  6. bass — low music
  7. chip — for betting
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. roll — a list
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. chip — to eat
  14. fork — in a road
  15. file — a tool
  16. file — a line of people
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. bass — the fish
  19. court — for sport
  20. file — a document
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. court — of a king

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