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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chip · bowl · march · chest · present · stem

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. stem — to come from
  5. march — the month
  6. chest — of your body
  7. present — a gift
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — a box
  11. chip — for betting
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. march — music
  14. chip — to eat
  15. march — the month
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. present — there
  18. bowl — to roll

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