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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. suit — to fit
  3. kick — in football
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. cell — a phone
  6. mine — for digging
  7. hand — help
  8. chip — to eat
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. chip — for betting
  15. fine — all right
  16. suit — clothes
  17. fine — high quality
  18. suit — in cards
  19. hand — in cards
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. wake — a trail
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. cell — in biology

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