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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 · mine · bat · bound · stem · tube · jam · hand

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. bound — obliged
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. bound — certain
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. bat — the animal
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bound — tied together
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. mine — for digging
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. chip — for betting
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. tube — a container
  20. tube — the underground
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. hand — help
  23. chip — to eat
  24. stem — of a plant

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