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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 116 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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. stem — to come from
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. chip — for betting
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. cap — a lid
  7. hand — in cards
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. hand — help
  11. chip — to eat
  12. file — a tool
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. plane — a tool
  16. scale — in music
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. wake — a trail
  19. cap — a hat
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. cap — of ice
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. file — a line of people
  24. scale — size or range

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