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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. tear — from crying
  3. rash — a series
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. land — to come down
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. sharp — clever
  10. chip — for betting
  11. ground — a position
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. chip — to eat
  14. ground — the earth
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. ground — crushed
  22. land — a country
  23. rash — hasty
  24. land — ground

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