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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: stem · chip · spring · ball · scale · board · ground · straw

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. ground — crushed
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. board — to get on
  6. scale — size or range
  7. spring — the season
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. chip — to eat
  11. board — a committee
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. spring — of water
  14. ground — the earth
  15. ball — a great time
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. scale — in music
  18. stem — to come from
  19. ball — a dance
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. ground — a position
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. chip — for betting

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