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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 potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. object — to protest
  7. bat — the animal
  8. file — a document
  9. chip — for betting
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. fall — the season
  13. object — an aim
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. fall — to drop
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. fall — to drop
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. object — a thing

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