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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. chip — to eat
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. chip — for betting
  6. file — a document
  7. bear — the animal
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. stem — to come from
  10. row — a line
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. key — the most important part
  14. rash — hasty
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. row — to paddle
  17. key — for a lock
  18. file — a tool
  19. rash — a series
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. file — a line of people
  23. key — in music
  24. stem — a stem cell

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