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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: row · face · club · root · chip · stem · fork · wind

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  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. face — to confront
  2. club — for golf
  3. wind — moving air
  4. row — a line
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. face — part of the head
  7. club — for dancing
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. fork — in a road
  10. row — to paddle
  11. root — of a word
  12. wind — moving air
  13. club — a group
  14. chip — to eat
  15. stem — to come from
  16. face — to point toward
  17. root — of a plant
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. chip — for betting
  20. root — the cause
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. stem — a stem cell
  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