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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. lean — to bend
  3. lean — thin
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. tear — from crying
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. chip — to eat
  9. band — a music group
  10. fall — to drop
  11. row — a line
  12. tear — from crying
  13. row — to paddle
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. tear — to rip
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. cell — in biology
  22. fall — to drop
  23. band — a ring
  24. fall — the season

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