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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. hand — in cards
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. chip — for betting
  7. pitch — completely
  8. kid — to tease
  9. hand — help
  10. suit — to fit
  11. kid — child
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. net — in sport
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. net — after costs
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. net — for catching
  21. suit — in cards
  22. chip — to eat
  23. mine — for digging
  24. snap — to click

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