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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. club — for dancing
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. cell — a phone
  5. ground — the earth
  6. wind — moving air
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. net — after costs
  11. cell — in biology
  12. game — wild animals
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. club — for golf
  15. chip — to eat
  16. wind — moving air
  17. club — a group
  18. ground — crushed
  19. net — for catching
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. game — a match
  22. ground — a position
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. net — in sport

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