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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. capital — money
  4. chip — to eat
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. capital — a city
  7. stock — shares
  8. shower — to wash
  9. stem — to come from
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. shower — rain
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. fall — the season
  15. stock — goods
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. scale — in music
  19. fall — to drop
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. scale — size or range
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. chip — for betting

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