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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 · leaves · bat · mine · chest · staff · stem · track

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  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. bat — for baseball
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. staff — employees
  7. chip — to eat
  8. track — to keep track
  9. chest — of your body
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. track — a path
  12. bat — the animal
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. stem — to come from
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. chest — of your body
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. chest — a box
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. track — a song
  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