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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 potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. scale — in music
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. pop — music
  6. field — for sport
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. pop — soda
  9. land — ground
  10. pop — to visit
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. land — to come down
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. chip — for betting
  17. field — a subject
  18. scale — size or range
  19. stand — to bear
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. land — a country
  22. wake — a trail
  23. field — farmland
  24. stand — for spectators

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