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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. bat — the animal
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. chip — for betting
  9. dip — to sink
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cell — in biology
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. chip — to eat
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. cell — a phone
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. pound — a weight

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