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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. roll — a cake
  3. hand — in cards
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. kid — child
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. kid — to tease
  12. hand — help
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — low music
  18. roll — a list
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. perch — the fish
  24. chip — to eat

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