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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 · pit · lean · stem · row · file · rush · rule

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. rush — hurry
  3. chip — for betting
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. rule — a law
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. chip — to eat
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. row — a line
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. pit — in a race
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. file — a document
  14. stem — to come from
  15. lean — thin
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. pit — a hole
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. lean — to bend
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. row — to paddle
  22. file — a line of people
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. rule — government

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