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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. chip — to eat
  4. content — happy
  5. spell — a short time
  6. content — the amount
  7. hand — help
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. spell — letters
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. swing — music
  13. swing — in golf
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. chip — for betting
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. hand — in cards
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. swing — to play on
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. spell — magic

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