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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. chip — for betting
  3. present — there
  4. present — a gift
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. chip — to eat
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. hand — in cards
  11. wax — to grow
  12. present — the time now
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. hand — help
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. fork — in a road
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. vault — a safe
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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