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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. chip — for betting
  3. land — ground
  4. chip — to eat
  5. ground — crushed
  6. land — to come down
  7. land — a country
  8. wound — an injury
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. mug — a cup
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. mug — to rob
  13. mug — a face
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — the earth
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. patient — a sick person

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