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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. kid — to tease
  4. last — final
  5. chip — for betting
  6. last — finally
  7. chip — to eat
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. root — of a plant
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. season — of the year
  12. root — of a word
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. charge — electricity
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. last — to go on
  18. charge — a price
  19. root — the cause
  20. charge — in control
  21. wound — an injury
  22. season — in sport
  23. wound — an injury
  24. kid — child

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