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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. chip — to eat
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. club — for dancing
  5. mine — for digging
  6. object — a thing
  7. ground — crushed
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. object — an aim
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. pound — a weight
  12. race — humankind
  13. ground — a position
  14. object — to protest
  15. race — a contest
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. race — the arms race
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. chair — a leader
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. ground — the earth
  22. chip — for betting
  23. club — a group
  24. chair — to sit on

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