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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. cell — a phone
  3. chip — for betting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cold — an illness
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. chip — to eat
  8. spring — a coil
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. perch — the fish
  11. spring — of water
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — not warm
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. stem — to come from
  20. cell — in biology
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. spring — the season

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