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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. spring — the season
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. net — in sport
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. cell — in biology
  9. kid — to tease
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. chip — to eat
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. spring — of water
  14. cell — a phone
  15. kid — child
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. wake — a trail
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. pitch — completely
  21. spring — a coil
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. net — for catching
  24. net — after costs

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