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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. spring — the season
  3. chip — for betting
  4. march — the month
  5. march — music
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. spring — a coil
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. spring — of water
  18. march — the month
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. lean — thin
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — to come from
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. lean — to bend

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