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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 124 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. pit — a hole
  3. chip — for betting
  4. cold — an illness
  5. pit — in a race
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. kick — in football
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. rash — hasty
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wake — a trail
  18. chip — to eat
  19. rash — a series
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. kick — with a leg

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