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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. spell — a short time
  5. toast — bread
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. field — for sport
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. net — for catching
  10. net — in sport
  11. spell — magic
  12. cold — not warm
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. rule — government
  15. cold — an illness
  16. chip — for betting
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. net — after costs
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. spell — letters
  21. rule — a law
  22. kick — in football
  23. field — farmland
  24. field — a subject

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