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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: chip · court · tear · kick · stem · wax · staff · land

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. wax — to grow
  3. stem — to come from
  4. tear — from crying
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. land — a country
  7. staff — employees
  8. tear — to rip
  9. land — ground
  10. chip — for betting
  11. kick — in football
  12. staff — employees
  13. tear — from crying
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. court — of law
  17. court — of a king
  18. land — to come down
  19. staff — a stick
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. court — for sport
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. kick — a thrill

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