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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. wound — an injury
  3. snap — to click
  4. present — a gift
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. swing — music
  9. chip — for betting
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. present — there
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. swing — in golf
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. wound — an injury
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. present — the time now
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. swing — to play on
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. calf — a young animal

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