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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 116 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: dip · bat · prune · face · stem · mouse · chip · snap

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to click
  3. chip — to eat
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. face — part of the head
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. stem — to come from
  9. dip — to sink
  10. prune — to trim
  11. face — to confront
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. chip — for betting
  14. bat — the animal
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. prune — to trim
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. face — to point toward
  24. prune — the fruit

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