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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. chip — to eat
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. chest — a box
  6. wound — an injury
  7. chip — for betting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. chest — of your body
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. race — a contest
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. snap — to click
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. land — to come down
  16. land — a country
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. race — humankind
  19. race — the arms race
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. wound — an injury
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. chest — of your body
  24. land — ground

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