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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. chest — of your body
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — of ice
  10. chip — for betting
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. chest — a box
  13. pass — a permit
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. hand — help
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. bat — the animal
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. vault — a safe
  21. hand — in cards
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. cap — a lid

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