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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  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. chip — to eat
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. ground — crushed
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. mine — for digging
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. capital — money
  13. ground — the earth
  14. bear — the animal
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. chip — for betting
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. capital — a city
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. ground — a position
  23. bear — the animal
  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