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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: rest · stock · prune · hand · cell · calf · chip · race

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. hand — help
  3. rest — what's left
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. race — the arms race
  6. stock — goods
  7. rest — a break
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. hand — in cards
  10. cell — in biology
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. cell — a phone
  14. chip — to eat
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. prune — to trim
  17. chip — for betting
  18. rest — what's left
  19. prune — to trim
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. race — humankind
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. race — a contest

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