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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. ground — the earth
  4. shower — to wash
  5. chair — a leader
  6. prune — to trim
  7. ground — a position
  8. tube — the underground
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. chip — to eat
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. prune — to trim
  18. key — for a lock
  19. ground — crushed
  20. cold — an illness
  21. key — the most important part
  22. shower — rain
  23. tube — a container
  24. key — in music

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