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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. prune — to trim
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. mark — a trace
  8. cold — an illness
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. cold — not warm
  11. prune — to trim
  12. mark — a grade
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. chip — for betting
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. sharp — clever
  20. mine — for digging
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. pass — a permit

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