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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: pop · chip · stem · mark · face · chair · net · straw

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. stem — to come from
  4. pop — soda
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — for betting
  7. face — to point toward
  8. net — in sport
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. net — for catching
  12. mark — a trace
  13. chair — a leader
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. pop — music
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. pop — to visit
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. net — after costs
  22. face — to confront
  23. mark — a grade
  24. face — part of the head

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