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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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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 · stem · ground · prune · swing · wind · march · safe

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. wind — moving air
  4. swing — to play on
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. chip — for betting
  8. swing — music
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. march — music
  14. ground — a position
  15. march — the month
  16. swing — in golf
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. ground — the earth
  19. wind — moving air
  20. chip — to eat
  21. prune — to trim
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. ground — crushed
  24. march — the month

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