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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. sharp — clever
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. cap — of ice
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. cap — a hat
  7. rest — what's left
  8. mug — to rob
  9. cap — a lid
  10. mug — a cup
  11. chip — to eat
  12. mug — a face
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. board — to get on
  15. rest — what's left
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. rest — a break
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — the animal
  20. pound — a weight
  21. chip — for betting
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. board — a committee
  24. chip — in a computer

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