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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. stock — goods
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. stock — shares
  10. stem — to come from
  11. file — a tool
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. chip — to eat
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. dip — to sink
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. bat — the animal
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. file — a document
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. foot — a measure

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