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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 potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. hand — help
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. stem — to come from
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. plane — a tool
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. sharp — clever
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chip — for betting
  17. hand — in cards
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. sharp — with an edge

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