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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: tear · mine · chip · stem · trunk · shower · pound · net

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. tear — to rip
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. shower — to wash
  5. net — for catching
  6. mine — for digging
  7. stem — to come from
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. chip — for betting
  13. pound — a weight
  14. net — in sport
  15. shower — rain
  16. net — after costs
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. tear — from crying
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. chip — to eat

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