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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. chip — for betting
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. rash — hasty
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. rash — a series
  11. wind — moving air
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. chest — of your body
  15. cell — in biology
  16. chest — of your body
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. wind — moving air
  20. chip — to eat
  21. cell — a phone
  22. lie — to recline
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. chest — a box

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