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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lie — to recline
  12. kid — to tease
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. rash — a series
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. mine — for digging
  20. rash — hasty
  21. chip — for betting
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. fork — in a road

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