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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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Word bank
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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 · ground · stem · straw · fork · cap · prune · hand

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. chip — for betting
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. chip — to eat
  5. hand — in cards
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. prune — to trim
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. fork — in a road
  15. cap — a hat
  16. ground — crushed
  17. hand — help
  18. stem — to come from
  19. prune — to trim
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — a position
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. cap — a lid
  24. fork — to eat with

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