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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: spring · foot · saw · straw · march · chip · cell · lie

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. march — the month
  5. chip — to eat
  6. cell — a phone
  7. march — the month
  8. saw — the tool
  9. cell — in biology
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. foot — a measure
  12. chip — for betting
  13. spring — a coil
  14. saw — the tool
  15. lie — to recline
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. spring — the season
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. march — music
  21. spring — of water
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. cell — in a prison

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