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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. stock — goods
  3. stock — shares
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. chip — to eat
  8. cell — in biology
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. chip — for betting
  12. kid — child
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. branch — a division
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. kid — to tease
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. cap — a lid
  22. cap — a hat
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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