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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 120 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 · cold · snap · bat · current · stem · deal · plane

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. chip — to eat
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to click
  13. deal — to handle
  14. chip — for betting
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. stem — to come from
  18. current — of water
  19. current — electric
  20. current — happening now
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. bat — the animal
  24. plane — a tool

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