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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. shower — rain
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitch — completely
  6. kick — in football
  7. cell — a phone
  8. deal — to handle
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. mine — for digging
  11. cell — in biology
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. shower — to wash
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. chip — for betting
  16. chip — to eat
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. hand — in cards
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — help

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