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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 blown up by a land ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. kick — in football
  3. bank — for money
  4. chip — for betting
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. sharp — clever
  7. lie — to recline
  8. game — a match
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. chip — to eat
  11. spring — a coil
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. bank — for money
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. spring — the season
  18. bank — of a river
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. game — wild animals
  22. mine — for digging
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. spring — of water

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