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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. wound — an injury
  4. current — happening now
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. wound — an injury
  8. current — of water
  9. staff — employees
  10. season — in sport
  11. staff — a stick
  12. squash — the sport
  13. current — electric
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — to crush
  16. chip — for betting
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. season — of the year
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. staff — employees
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — a straw man

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