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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  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. chip — to eat
  2. ball — a dance
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. face — to point toward
  5. squash — to crush
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. face — to confront
  9. squash — the sport
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. face — part of the head
  14. fork — in a road
  15. chip — for betting
  16. drill — a practice
  17. capital — money
  18. drill — the tool
  19. drill — army training
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. ball — a great time
  23. capital — a city
  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