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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. rash — a series
  4. pit — in a race
  5. spell — magic
  6. ball — a great time
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. chip — to eat
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. ball — a dance
  15. spell — letters
  16. pit — a hole
  17. spell — a short time
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. rash — hasty
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. chip — for betting
  22. stand — to bear
  23. wake — a trail
  24. kid — child

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