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

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chest — of your body
  4. field — a subject
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bank — for money
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. chip — for betting
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. bank — of a river
  11. rash — hasty
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. rash — a series
  14. chest — of your body
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. field — farmland
  19. field — for sport
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. chest — a box
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. bank — for money

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