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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — in cards
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. hand — help
  6. bore — to tire
  7. chip — to eat
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. cold — an illness
  10. fine — high quality
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. chip — for betting
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. root — of a word
  15. bore — to drill
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. root — of a plant
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. root — the cause
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. fine — all right
  24. cold — not warm

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