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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. chip — to eat
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. mine — for digging
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. foot — a measure
  7. shower — rain
  8. chip — for betting
  9. capital — a city
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. capital — money
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. snap — to click
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. hide — to keep secret

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