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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 116 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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. court — of law
  4. cold — an illness
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. shower — rain
  7. court — of a king
  8. chip — to eat
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — music
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. swing — in golf
  14. shower — to wash
  15. chip — for betting
  16. plane — a tool
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pound — a weight
  19. cold — not warm
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. court — for sport
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. coach — a trainer

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