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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. chip — for betting
  5. net — for catching
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. stem — to come from
  8. last — finally
  9. last — final
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. chip — to eat
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. last — to go on
  18. net — in sport
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. scale — in music
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. net — after costs
  23. wind — moving air
  24. scale — size or range

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