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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. club — for dancing
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. stem — to come from
  8. chip — to eat
  9. bear — the animal
  10. club — for golf
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. chip — for betting
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. bear — the animal
  17. club — a group
  18. chip — in a computer

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