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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. cue — a hint
  3. key — for a lock
  4. chest — a box
  5. charge — in control
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. chip — to eat
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. chip — for betting
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. cue — a signal
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. board — to get on
  15. charge — electricity
  16. charge — a price
  17. key — in music
  18. chest — of your body
  19. cue — for pool
  20. key — the most important part
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — to cut
  23. board — a committee
  24. chest — of your body

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