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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. hand — in cards
  4. club — a group
  5. press — newspapers
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. hand — help
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. spring — a coil
  11. press — a publisher
  12. spring — of water
  13. field — a subject
  14. spring — the season
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. field — for sport
  17. club — for golf
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. club — for dancing
  20. field — farmland
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. chip — for betting
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. press — to push

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