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

Word bank: bound · wave · rule · chip · cold · row · stem · pitch

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. bound — obliged
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. rule — government
  5. cold — an illness
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. row — to paddle
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. cold — not warm
  11. chip — to eat
  12. rule — a law
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. pitch — completely
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bound — certain
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. chip — for betting
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. bound — tied together
  21. row — a line
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. stem — to come from

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