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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 · craft · stem · court · tear · fan · fall · chip

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. court — for sport
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. craft — boats
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. dip — to sink
  8. tear — from crying
  9. fall — the season
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. chip — for betting
  13. stem — to come from
  14. tear — to rip
  15. court — of law
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. tear — from crying
  20. fall — to drop
  21. court — of a king
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. craft — a skill

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