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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. chip — to eat
  3. squash — to crush
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wind — moving air
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. prune — to trim
  9. wind — moving air
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. squash — the sport
  12. fine — high quality
  13. chip — for betting
  14. fine — all right
  15. face — to point toward
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. tear — from crying
  19. face — to confront
  20. stem — to come from
  21. face — part of the head
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — to rip

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