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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. staff — employees
  5. field — a subject
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. field — for sport
  11. chip — to eat
  12. hand — help
  13. pass — a permit
  14. field — farmland
  15. staff — employees
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. kid — child
  20. hand — in cards
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. staff — a stick
  24. chip — for betting

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