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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 116 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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. chip — to eat
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. hand — in cards
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. cell — in biology
  12. drill — a practice
  13. hand — help
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. cell — a phone
  16. capital — money
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. chip — for betting
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. deal — to handle
  21. drill — army training
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. capital — a city
  24. drill — the tool

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