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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. chip — to eat
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. bear — the animal
  5. plane — a tool
  6. chip — for betting
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. land — a country
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. branch — a division
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. land — to come down
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. stem — to come from
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. bear — the animal
  23. land — ground
  24. chair — a leader

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