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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 120 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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. 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. can — to be able to
  2. swing — music
  3. can — a tin
  4. chip — for betting
  5. chip — to eat
  6. pit — a hole
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. can — a tin
  9. swing — in golf
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — in cards
  12. fall — the season
  13. pit — in a race
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. cold — not warm
  16. fall — to drop
  17. swing — to play on
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bulb — for light
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. fall — to drop
  23. bulb — for light
  24. 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