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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. mug — to rob
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wound — an injury
  10. land — a country
  11. mug — a cup
  12. scale — size or range
  13. hand — in cards
  14. cold — not warm
  15. hand — help
  16. cold — an illness
  17. scale — in music
  18. land — ground
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. land — to come down
  22. chip — for betting
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. mug — a face

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