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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  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. straw — dry grass
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. chip — to eat
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. charge — a price
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. charge — in control
  11. cap — a lid
  12. stem — to come from
  13. prune — to trim
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cap — a hat
  16. charge — electricity
  17. prune — to trim
  18. wind — moving air
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. chip — for betting
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. wind — moving air
  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